The Wild Krew
by Tang Ri Shan
Summary: When Ken Kailix and his sister Jackie join an animal help group called the Creature Corps, they are thrilled. Helping animals is something they have dreamed of doing their whole lives. But eventually the siblings notice something weird about Allison, the Club's leader. They investigate and make two shocking discoveries that land them in the middle of a secret war for wildlife.
1. Prologue

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

(**Kratts Creatures, Zoboomafoo, Wild Kratts, I love 'em all! I'm a big Kratts Brothers fan, and this story is made to tribute them. It'll mostly follow Wild Kratts, but I'll be incorporating elements from their other shows as well. I do not own the Kratt Brothers or any other characters in this story. Enjoy and PLEASE COMMENT! Let me know you guys are still reading!)**

**Prologue**

The owl called out once from its branch, its dark eyes gazing serenely at its surroundings. It twisted its head completely around, scanning the surrounding woods for prey. It paused, its head gazing over its shoulder. Its eyes widened and it blinked. A faint humming had reached its sensitive ears. Its eyes gazed skyward, following the sound. The sky was filled with clouds, there was the faint outline of a silvery moon trying, without success, to break through the cloud barrier. Suddenly there was a little disturbance in the clouds, a small hole appeared for a fraction of a second. The owl blinked again, but when it looked back up, the hole had closed. Curious, the owl spread its wings and flew upwards, leaving the tree canopy behind. As it flew higher, the humming sound became louder. The owl suddenly came to a halt and screeched a warning. The humming got louder and the owl noticed a see-through, blurred outline moving straight towards it. The owl screeched again and dove, just in time as it felt something brush against its tail feathers. The owl flew in a circle and watched as the blurred shape came to a stop, hovering above the edge of a small meadow ringed by forest.

_**Inside**_

"JZ, Report!" A shrill voice called out. "How far away are we?"

"Range to assigned coordinates, 5 miles" A scraggy voice replied. "I've spotted a meadow below. It's big enough, isolated, would make an ideal recovery zone. Scanning now" A minute passed. "Scans reveal only insects and small mammals in said zone. Touching down"

_**Outside**_

The owl narrowed its eyes as the hum suddenly got louder. The blurred outline settled down, whipping the grass and leaves in the meadow. There was a quiet thump, and then the humming died away. The owl landed on a branch and studied the field. The blurred outline had stopped moving and was now completely invisible, and now that the humming had stopped, the owl couldn't hear anything. It was just thinking of leaving when it heard a hiss. A second one followed the first and a square of light appeared out of nowhere, briefly illuminating the field. The owl blinked twice as two figures emerged from the circle of light. They looked like humans, they were both thin, but muscular, one was taller than the other. Both were wearing black suits with colored markings on them, one had green, the other blue. Both of them wore helmets that were oblong, and covered their entire heads, with two antennae slicing out the top. The owl cocked its head, it had learned to avoid humans, but these humans, while strange looking, didn't appear dangerous. The owl lifted its wings and flew closer.

"_MK, CK, listen carefully. The location in question is about 5 miles away, to the East. Your job is to get in, free the animals, and get out, preferable __without__ anyone noticing. We can't get any closer than this without being detected. Good luck"_

"Copy that KO, out" One of the humans tapped his wrist. "But how are we going to sneak in there?"

"If only we had some creature help." The other human sighed, looking around. The owl, who had been listening, felt a sudden rush to help. It lifted its wings and flew towards the two strange humans. The green one noticed the owl and held out an arm as a perch. "Well, hello there" He said as the owl alightened on his arm.

"A barn owl!" The other human in blue exclaimed. "Perfect!"

"Yeah" The first human agreed. "With the powers of silent flight, awesome eyesight, and amazing hearing. Perfect for sneaking and entering." The blue human reached out and gently touched the owl's feathers with one hand, both humans used their other hands to press a glowing spot on their chests, and there was a flash of blue-green light. The owl felt its perch shrink beneath it, lifted itself into the air, and stared. Where there had been two tall humans, where now two odd-looking barn owls like itself. Instead of tan and cream feathers, they had deep brown feathers, a tan face and green or blue highlights.

"Thanks for the assist" The blue owl whispered as the two owls flew away through the trees. As the barn owl flew in the other direction, the square of light disappeared and it heard someone yell the words

"To the Creature Rescue!"


	2. Chapter 1

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

(**Hello again! Got a new chapter for you! Enjoy and PLEASE comment. It's not that much trouble to type a few words in the comment section, right?)****  
**

**(Remember, I only own Ken and Jackie, not anyone else in the story. In case you didn't notice, both names come from previous shows. Ken is named after the hippo crash test dummy from Kratts Creatures, while Jackie is named after one of the animal helpers in Zoboomafoo. The club leader, Allison, is also named after a character in Kratts Creatures.)**

**CH 1**

KWAHAHAHAHAHA! Ken's eyes snapped open as the piercing laugh of a kookaburra echoed around his room. Yawning, he reached over to his bedside table and tapped the top of his alarm clock. The laughing stopped.

"That's one way to be woken up" Ken chuckled as he got out of bed. Grabbing a towel, he walked down the hall towards the bathroom. As he turned on the water, he heard whipoorwill call seep from under the door and smiled as he undressed and stepped into the shower. As he lathered up, he found his mind flashing back to the strange dream he had had last night. What was it? Ken shut his eyes and grimaced, trying to remember. He was certain that there had been a flying turtle, and he vaguely remembered seeing a group of strange creatures. They had been talking to him, trying to tell him something. But the only thing he clearly remembered was a strange symbol. A white pawprint in a black circle.

"Hey Ken!" Ken was snapped out of his daydream by a pounding on the door. "Hurry up in there!"

"Sorry, be right out!" Ken called back as he turned off the shower. He dried off, brushed his teeth, and pulled his green PJs back on. Checking himself in the mirror, he saw a boy with messy brown hair and blue eyes staring back at him. He smiled and turned towards the door as the knocking began again. He opened ti see his sister Jackie standing there in her nightgown and robe, one fist raised, her long brown hair a mess.

"About time!" She snapped, darting past him into the bathroom.

"Good morning to you too" Ken mused as the door closed behind her. He chuckled as his father stepped out of the master bedroom already dressed in a black suit and matching tie.

"Breakfast in ten" He said as he headed downstairs.

"Got it" Ken nodded as he headed back to his room. He changed into jeans and a white t-shirt with a snow leopard on it. As he tied on his sneakers, his phone buzzed. Picking it up, he saw a text from his friend Amy.

_I GOT IT! JUST ARRIVED!_

Ken felt his eyes widen as he read the text. His fingers flew as he responded

_AND?_

a minute later,

_I GOT IN!_

Ken pumped his fist as he texted back

_CONGRATS!_

_THANKS! WHAT ABOUT U?_

_HAVN'T SEEN IT YET. STILL HOPING!_

_YOU'LL GET IT! i KNOW YOU WILL!_

"Kids, Breakfast!" Ken heard his father call from downstairs. SEE U LATER! He texted and went downstairs.

Jackie was already there, wearing brown pants and a khaki blouse. Jackie always said she looked good in earthy colors like grey, brown, and green. Ken had to admit she looked good. They complimented her green eyes. Both Ken and Jackie had dark brown hair, but while Ken's eyes were sapphire blue, Jackie's were emerald green.

"Good morning Ken" She said sweetly, smiling as she flipped her hair under her brown headband.

"Good morning Jackie" Ken replied, sitting down and grabbing a bagel from the center of the table. "Glad you finally got out of the shower"

"Yeah, I must have set my alarm wrong" Jackie said, filling a bowl with cereal.

"I will never understand" Their father spoke up from the end of the table, turning down the small radio that sat on the edge of the table and peering over his glasses, framing his children with his blue eyes. "Why you kids had to get _those_ particular alarm tones. Who likes waking up to a whipporwill call or a kookaburra laugh?"

"We do" Both kids replied.

"I mean, who else can say they woke up to that particular bird call?" Ken asked. His father laughed and didn't answer.

"Mail call!" Their mother announced as she walked in holding a small bundle of envelopes.

"I prefer _that_ kind of call" Their father said, making everyone laugh. "What have we got?"

"Hmm, nothing special." She replied sorting through them. "There's a letter for each of you though" She fished out two letters, handing one to Ken and one to Jackie. As soon as Ken took it, he felt a sudden surge of excitement. His fingers seemed to tingle. Could this be it? He slowly opened the letter.

_Dear Ken Kailish,_

_It is our pleasure to announce that, after much consideration, we have accepted your application and officially invite you to join the Creature Corps staff. _

_As you are aware, the Creature Corps was founded 10 years ago, and its mission is simply to ensure that animals are allowed to continue living free and in the wild. To help ensure this, the Corps has called upon the ideas and hands of children like you all over the world._

_As a member of the Creature Corps staff, you will help assist the C.O of your sector in planning and organizing awareness events, as well as help to spread the message about caring for creatures._

_More details will be explained at the next staff meeting in your sector, which will commence at the Animal Junction Restaurant tomorrow evening at 6 pm. We sincerely hope that you and your family will be able to attend. _

_Congradulations, and we look forward to working with you. _

_Yours in Adventuring,_

**_Chris__ Kratt  
_**_**Martin**_** Kratt  
**Founders of the Creature Corps  
"Go make An Animal Friend Today!"

Below the signature was the logo of the Corps, a black-and-white lemur hanging from a pair of C's,back-to-back.

As Ken finished reading the letter, he felt so stunned he could barely move, barely breathe. Slowly, he glanced up at his sister and saw his surprise mirrored in her eyes. Then, her mouth slowly curved up into a gigantic smile and Ken felt his face mirror hers.

"I GOT IN! NO WAY! YOU TOO?" Both siblings exclaimed at the same time, causing their father to burst out laughing.

"Are you sure they aren't twins, because they're reading each other's thoughts again" He said to his wife, who smiled.

"Congratulations" She said to Ken and Jackie. "It's so exciting that you're ready to take an interest in helping the community"

"Mom, the Creature Corps isn't just about helping the community" Jackie corrected her. "It's about helping animals."

"Yeah, wild animals belong in the wild" Ken agreed. "Not wearing costumes, and not doing silly tricks"

"Wait! Listen to this!" His father suddenly barked, turning up the volume of his radio.

_"...Police are searching for the burglars that broke into the Quilbolt chemical labs last night. Though nothing of value was taken, it was estimated that the burglars caused $5000 worth of damage when they released all the lab animals from their cages and damaged several pieces of machinery. The curious thing was that one the night guards, who witnessed the incident, described the burglars as being two man-sized barn owls. The research lab is an offshoot of the Atlas Medical corporation and was apparently researching how animals reacted to various pathogens. This break in comes days after a petition was started by the Kratt Brothers that the lab free its testing animals after they were finished with them. The director of the lab and chief of security were unavailable for comment"_

"Hmmm. What do you think of that?" Ken's father turned and noticed the frowns on Ken and Jackie's faces.

"Wild animals should _also_ not be caged and used as test subjects" Jackie said, her voice bitter.

"Careful Jackie" Her father warned. "I don't like it either, but that lab provides a lot of income around here. If peopel hear you talk like that, you could find yourself in trouble."

"I don't care if anyone hears me. It's the truth!" Jackie stomped her foot in frustration"

* * *

Little did Jackie know that someone _was_ listening, _and_ watching. A small spider-like robot was hanging from the ceiling, gazing down at the family. It focused on Jackie and its lens eye seemed to narrow.

Some distance away, two figures were monitoring a screen. One of them pressed a button and the screen rewound.

_"I don't care it anyone hears me. It's the truth!"_ Jackie's angry face filled the screen.

The figures didn't say anything, but one shook its head, and the other gave a wicked smile.

* * *

**(Uh oh! Jackie should be more careful! This could be trouble, or is it?) Please let me know what you think so far)**

**(Next chapter, Ken and Jackie go to the meeting and meet Allison, and there is another 'incident' at that very restaurant)**


	3. Chapter 2

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(Yay! Nice to see people haven't forgotten me! Here's the next chapter!)**

**(P.S: Amy's last name is shared by one of Zoboomafoo's founders. See? Lot's of tributes happening here!)**

Ken and Jackie were still feeling excited when they were dropped off at school by their parents.

"I'm so excited!" Jackie squealed, practically bouncing up and down.

"Yeah! This is gonna be great!" Ken agreed.

"Hey Guys!" Ken and Jackie looked up to see a tall girl with long red hair waving at them from the school doors.

"Amy!" Jackie called as they ran up to her. Amy Robertson smiled at them, her green eyes flashing with happiness. She adjusted the grey beanie on her head and ran over to them.

"Check it out!" She crowed, pulling a letter from her shoulder bag.

"Us too!" Ken and Jackie both showed her their letters.

Amy's jaw dropped. "Both of you? No Way!" She screamed.

"Yes way!" Jackie crowed as she and Amy hugged, screaming in joy. Ken rolled his eyes, but kept a big smile on his face. "_That's best friends for you"_ he thought to himself. Amy and Jackie had been friends since kindergarten, Ken was friends with her as well, and all three of them shared a love of animals.

"And what are you bird-brains squawking about now?" Ken's smile faded and the girls broke apart.

"What's it to you, Desmona?" Jackie snapped, turning to face the dark-haired girl with the wicked sneer on her face.

"I'm just saying" Desmona Donata replied, flipping her black hair over her shoulder stylishly, "that some of us prefer to start our morning without having to listen to the calls of the _screamacus idiotus"_

"Oooh clever. You come up with that yourself?" Amy teased, then frowned. "Interesting shoes by the way"

Desmona smiled, motioning to her calf-length boots, which were made of a shiny green material. "Like 'em? They're genuine snake skin" Ken and Amy gasped while Jackie visibly paled. Desmona smiled wickedly at their reactions. "Oh that's right, I forgot. You three can't stand seeing animals made into clothing. Well then, seeing as how you're wearing animal hair yourself, maybe you shouldn't be wearing clothing at all!" Desmona burst out laughing at the thought, as did the crowd that had assembled.

"Actually, our shirts are made of cotton, which is a _plant_" Ken corrected.

"Yeah, and my sweater's made of sheep's wool from my uncle's farm! Wool I collected, spun, and weaved myself!" Amy added, tapping the dark brown sweater she was wearing.

"We actually _care_ where our clothing comes from!" Jackie snapped. "I'll bet you never even saw what snake those came from" She mentioned to Desmona's boots.

Desmona shrugged. "Who cares? A snake's a snake" Jackie's eye widened ans her face changed from pale to red as she flushed with anger. She opened her mouth to retort, but just then, the school bell rang. "Ah well. There's the bell. Ta ta, tree-huggers" Desmona sang over her shoulder as she walked away, flipping her hair again. Most of the assembled crowd followed her.

"Those poor snakes!" Amy covered her mouth in horror. Jackie sputtered like an angry firecracker.

"That little...that's practically murder! She can't get away with that!"

Ken sighed, shaking her head. "Since when has Desmona Donata ever cared about what was right? All she cares about is setting trends"

"Just like her fashion-fanatical aunt Donita" Amy growled, frowning as the threesome made to follow the rest of the class inside.

"Don't worry girls" Ken assured them. "Remember, what goes around comes around. Desmona's gonna get hers one of these days, I can feel it"

"Well, if she does, I hope I'm there to see it" Jackie grumbled as the threesome went in. As they closed the door, none of them noticed a small shape buzz in after them.

* * *

"Did you get a reading?"

"No, get me closer"

The blue-lined humanoid grunted as he gently eased the joystick forwards. Glancing up at the screen, he watched the image drift through the hallway of the school before focusing on Desmona. A few quick taps and the image zoomed in on her boots. "In range, scanning now" He pressed a button on the the joystick. A blue wave passed through the image, moving up and down the boots. There was a green flash and a DNA strand appeared on the side of the screen.

"DNA captured." The green-lined humanoid announced, tapping a few commands on the keyboard in front of him. "Searching database" The screen was filled with thousands of images of different creatures, their DNA patterns being compared against the DNA strand on the screen. Eventually the computer beeped and a DNA strand identical to the one scanned from Desmona's boots appeared on the screen. The humanoid tapped in a command and the image of a bright green snake appeared. "We have a match. _Corallus Caninus_ confirmed." The humanoid read out to chorus of groans. Spinning around in his chair, the green humanoid turned to face three other humanoids of various colors, one purple, one orange, and one yellow.

"Guess we now know what happened to that missing Emerald Tree Boa" The purple-lined humanoid grumbled.

"I don't get it." The yellow-lined humanoid scrached his head. "Why steal a snake from a pet store just to make into a pair of shoes? They don't even look that comfortable"

"Humans sometimes do mindless things, JZ" The blue-lined humanoid sighed.

Suddenly there was a beeping coming from another computer console. The orange-lined humanoid dashed to it and typed in a command. A map of the area appeared on the screen and a red blip began flashing.

"Got him" She growled. "According to this, our target is due to appear at the Animal Junction Restaurant tomorrow night."

"Animal Junction? Isn't that where..." The blue humanoid paused.

"The Creature Corps meeting is happening? Yeah" The green humanoid finished, then he gasped. "No, he wouldn't! Would he?"

"I wouldn't put anything past _that_ guy." The yellow humanoid snarled. "Looks like we have work to do" The others nodded.

* * *

For Ken and Jackie, the next two days seemed to fly by. After-school on Tuesday, both siblings raced home and finished their homework in record time.

"Man, I am so excited for tonight!" Jackie said as they drove to the restaurant for the event.

"Yeah, me too!" Ken agreed, adjusting the collar of his shirt. Their mother had insisted on them dressing a little formally for the meeting. Jackie was wearing an earth-brown dress and dark brown nylons while ken was wearing a dark green polo shirt and khaki pants.

"Making a good impression is very important." Their mother had insisted. "Especially at an important event like this"

"I'm sure no one else is this dressed up" Ken grumbled to himself. He saw, out of the corner of his eye, Jackie tug a little at the helm of her dress and gave a little smile. Jackie was not very into dressing up either. Like Ken, she preferred function over fashion.

"Here we are" Their mother said a few minutes later, pulling into the parking lot of the animal Junction Restaurant. The two-story building was built to resemble an earthen lodge and was roundish and the walls were painted a muddy brown and the building was covered by what looked like a thatched roof. To a newcomer, the building may not look like much, but Ken and Jackie, who had eaten there before, knew how popular it was with the locals. They passed through the front doors, which were carved with sunbursts and were flanked by elephant statues and they were greeted by the smell of spicy cooking wafting from the double doors leading into the kitchens. Peering through a stone archway, they could see groups of tables spread around the circular dining area or up on one of the two balconies that ringed the room. Servers in dark brown uniforms scuttled with purpose between the tables and along the far wall, a small band was playing a blues tune. Statues of various animals like antelope, lizards, birds and big cats ringed the room and more were painted on the walls. Ken glanced up as a big call resonated from the dark ceiling, which was covered in fake foliage. Dim lights and a bit of smoke added to the wild effect of the restaurant.

"Hello, my children are here for the creature corps meeting" Their mother spoke to the hostess, who was standing next to the serving podium. The hostess glanced down at her screen, then smiled.

"Of course miss, the meeting's going to be upstairs." She motioned to a flight of stairs that ran up along one of the walls, disappearing into the dark ceiling.

Ken's mother turned back to them. "Alright, you two have fun, okay?"

"Wait, you're not coming with us?" Jackie's voice mirrored the confusion that Ken was feeling.

"I wish I could" Their mother smiled sheepishly. "But I received a call this morning. There's been another short-staffing situation at the hospital"

_"Again?_" Jackie rolled her eyes while their mother nodded. Their mother was an experienced vet and was often called when there were problems at the clinic where she worked.

"I'm sorry, but just give your father a call when the meeting is over and he'll come get you. Okay?"

"Okay" Ken and Jackie agreed. Their mother gave them a wave and headed out the front doors while Ken and Jackie climbed the stairs alone.

* * *

**Okay, I lied. I told you that I'd get to the meeting by now, but I got so caught up in the moment. I don't like to make chapters too big so I'm cutting this one in two. **

**Let me know if there's anything from the shows that you want me to include, I'm sure I can squeeze it in. **

**In the next chapter, the kids meet Allison and make the first of many shocking discoveries. **

**(:Let me know what you think. Seriously, PLEASE COMMENT!:)**


	4. Chapter 3

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**Ch 3**

Ken signed as he climbed the steps next to his sister. He couldn't explain it, but he suddenly felt nervous. The higher up the stairs he got, the more intense the feeling became, his heart was fluttering, accompanied by an icy feeling on the back of his neck. Ken finally came to a halt as the stairs vanished into the dark ceiling of the room, and glanced back down the stairway. He could see the hostess, who was speaking to an elderly couple, but none of them were looking at him. He peered over the railing at the crowded dining room below. There were plenty of people there, but no one was looking up.

"Hey, what's the hold up?" Jackie glanced down at him from a few steps above him.

"Um.." Ken hesitated, suddenly having trouble finding the words. He glanced up towards the ceiling in thought, and felt his eyes widen in shock. Directly above him was ventilation duct, and peering down at him through the cover were a pair of eyes. Two glowing blue eyes without pupils that stared at him, unblinking. Ken felt the hair on the back of his neck rise up. Those eyes did not look human, yet there was some kind of wisdom in their gaze, he almost felt like the owner of those eyes was sizing him up, like a stray animal deciding if he was a threat or not.

"Ken!" Ken jumped at her sister's exclamation, the eyes blinked and then vanished. "What are you looking at?"

"Uh, nothing" Ken replied hastily, shaking his head. Jackie shrugged and turned away. Ken glanced back up at the vent, but was dark now. "I must have imagined it" He assured himself as he climbed the stairs. _  
_

* * *

"Uh-Oh"

"What's wrong?"

"Those two kids climbing the stairs, I think the boy saw me"

"W_hat_?"

"Relax, he probably thought I was a mouse or something"

"I hope so, distractions are the last thing we need. Come on, let's keep moving. He must be here somewhere!"

* * *

"WELCOME CREATURE CORPS" read the words on the sign that awaited the siblings at the top of the stairs. Ken and Jackie looked past it into a smaller room that consisted of five circular tables and an L shaped bar at the back. A dozen or so adults and as many teenagers were milling around between these two tables, talking in low voices. For a moment, Ken and Jackie stood by the sign, unsure of who to talk to, then one of the girls looked up, a familiar girl with red hair.

"Amy!" Jackie called, walking up to her.

"Hey, you guys made it" Amy's smile widened as she brushed a lock of red hair out of her eyes. She was wearing jeans and a cream-colored t shirt.

"I told mom no one else would get dressed up" Ken smiled at Jackie, who rolled her eyes.

Amy chuckled. "You guys look great. Hey Allison!" Amy called over her shoulder. A teenage girl with dark brown hair pulled back tight glanced up from one of the tables. She was wearing overalls and a dark green shirt. "Come over here!" The girl smiled as she walked over.

"Allison, these are my friends, Ken and Jackie Kailix" Amy introduced them.

"Nice to meet you guys" Allison shook their hands. "Thanks for coming"

"Thanks for having us" Jackie replied.

"Well, I think everyone's here now." Allison placed her fingers in her mouth and gave shrill whistle. Conversation died as everyone looked up. "Welcome everyone, please take a seat and we can get started" There was a scraping of chairs as everyone rushed to comply.  
"For those of you who don't know, my name is Allison and I am the C.O of this sector for the Creature Corps. The main purpose of this meeting is to help support the fishing festival happening next month."

"What's the fishing festival?" A young boy asked, raising his hand.

"Good question Cory" Allison nodded at the boy before answering. "The fishing festival is a yearly event held at Crescent Lake, about 30 miles south of here. Fishermen meet there to discuss stories and to help show others safe fishing skills. However recently, pollution from the nearby factories has decimated the fish stocks."

"That's terrible" Jackie exclaimed, looking crestfallen.

Allison nodded grimly. "The head of the festival contacted me, not only is the pollution a problem, but so is local involvement. For the past coupe years the festival has barely brought in enough people to make a difference. That's where we come in. We need ideas people, new and exciting ideas that can re-kindle people's interest in fishing. Anyone have any?"

"How about a fishing derby?" Someone suggested from the back.

Allison frowned. "It's a good idea, but it's been done so many times before I'm not sure that it will attract many people. Anyone else?"

"I've got an idea" Ken sad, raising his hand. Everyone looked at him. "How about a hunt?"

Allison tilted her head, a confused look on her face. "Like hunting animals?"

"In a way. Let's face it, I don't think there's truly a way that we can get everyone excited about fishing, so let's expand the fishing festival into something bigger that more people would be interested in."

"And what would you suggest?" Allison asked.

"Like a..." Ken paused. "A creature scavenger hunt"

"Explain please"

"Well, we could..." Ken thought quickly "We would make evidence of various creatures in the woods, like tracks and stuff, and challenge people to find them. The winner would receive some sort of prize"

"Or maybe we could dress up like creatures and have people try to find us by following the rules of nature" Jackie suggested. Ken shot Jackie a grateful smile.

"Yeah, let's do that" Ken agreed.

"I like it!" Someone shouted.

"Me too!"

"Count me in!"

Allison smiled at Ken and Jackie. "Looks like we have an idea. Anyone else want to contribute anything?" No one said anything, and Allison slapped the table. "Alright, now let's all try to find a way to bring Ken and Jackie's idea to life. We need to..." Allison broke off as loud noises suddenly began coming from the stairwell, bangs, crashes...

and screams.


	5. Chapter 4

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(Whew, who knew the holidays could be so busy? In between working, decorating the house, and my other writing pieces, I've barely had time to add on to this one. But here it is and I think you'll find its worth the wait.)**

**Ch 4 **

"What's going on?" Jackie exclaimed as the screams from downstairs grew louder.

"Think someone didn't like the food?" A kid asked, scratching his head.

"Let's go see what it is" Ken stood and started towards the stairs.

"No!" Ken froze as Allison rose to her feet. Her face was set in a frown and her eyes were suddenly cold. "We need to get out of here. Let's use the back stairs!" She pointed to a door in the far wall with a bright red EMERGENCY EXIT sign above it. There was a sudden scramble as the assembled crowd moved towards the door. Ken however, moved towards the stairs.

"Ken, what are you doing?" Jackie;s voice made him stop at the foot of the stairs. She was standing by the emergency exit.

"I'm going to see what's going on down there" Ken explained.

Jackie's eyes widened and she looked scared as another scream rose from the floor below, followed by loud crashes. "You can't be serious"

"Jackie, remember when we were coming up here, I saw those eyes in the vents?" Ken reminded her.

"Yeah, so?"

"So, if it was some kind of animal, what if it's loose downstairs?" Ken asked. "If it is, we need to help it"

Jackie still looked nervous. "What if it's dangerous?"

"_Any_ animal can become dangerous when it's scared." Ken reminded her. "If we can find out why it's scared, and remove it, maybe it'll leave of its own accord. Besides..." Ken smiled. "This is what we joined Creature Corps for"_  
_

Jackie nodded. "You're right. If we're serious about helping animals, we can't abandon this one. Let's go!" The siblings took off running down the stairs, neither noticing that the exit door was slightly ajar and that a shadowy figure was standing on the other side.

* * *

Ken and Jackie crept down the stairs, trying not to make any noise, not that it would have mattered with the loud bangs and growls coming from the main dining area.

"What do you think's in there?" Jackie whispered as they paused at the arch leading into the dining room. The hostess had fled from her desk.

Ken opened his mouth to answer, but was gut off by a vicious-sounding growl.

"Sounds like a wolf growl" Ken pondered. "More than one" his eyes widened as two more growls were heard. Jackie paled and gulped. Suddenly there was the sound of a slamming door, and all was quiet.

"What's happening?" Jackie moaned. Ken didn't answer, but he slowly stuck his head around the arch and peered into the room. He gasped. The room was deserted, and it was a wreck! Tables were overturned, some had their legs ripped off. Chairs were broken and splintered, tablecloths, sheets, and drapes were ripped to pieces, and there were claw marks everywhere.

"What kind of animal could have done this?" Ken asked as the siblings crept into the room. As if in response, they heard animal growls and a human scream coming from a pair of swinging doors at the far end of the hall.

"Well, whatever it is, sounds like it's still here" Jackie squeaked.

"It's in the kitchen" Ken breathed. The siblings looked at each other and then crept up to the sliding doors. Standing on tiptoe, they peeked through the glass windows, and their eyes grew to the size of dinner plates.

"Woahhh!" They both exclaimed.

The kitchen beyond was just as messy as the dining room, but _unlike_ the dining room, it wasn't deserted. Four figures were gathered around one of the steel tables. One was an extremely nervous man with a walrus mustache, a bald head, and a protruding belly. He was wearing a white apron and clutching a chef's hat. Surrounding him were three humanoid figures that looked like wolves on two legs. They each had different colored fur, moss green, sky blue, and creamy yellow. Each of them were growling angrily at the chef. Ken could see their fangs flashing in the kitchen lights.

"Vhat do you beasts vant wit me?" The chef cried out in a thickly accented voice that did little to mask his terror. One of the wolf-creatures growled, as if in responce.

"I do not know vhat you are talking about?" The chef cried out, wringing his hat nervously.

"Is he _communicating_ with them?" Jackie whispered to Ken, her eyes wide. Ken shrugged and leaned a little closer to listen, but suddenly he felt the door start to move. It squeaked loudly. The three wolf-figures froze. The chef looked up and locked eyes with Ken.

"HELP! HELP ME!" He screamed, waving his arms. The wolf-figures turned towards the doorway. Ken and Jackie ducked down, but heard a scrabble of claws getting louder. Ken glanced at Jackie, whose face mirrored his own terror. _HIDE,_ he mouthed. Jackie nodded fearfully, turned and dove under a table. Ken dove under another table that flanked the door, which burst open a second later. Ken froze as a wolf growl filled the room.

Ken waited with bated breath as he heard sniffing, followed by clicking of claws on the dining room's wooden floor. The creature growled again, but if sounded fainter as it headed towards the front of the restaurant.

Kevin gave a mental sigh of relief, than he noticed that part of his foot was sticking out from the skirt that covered the table. The shifted backwards, trying to pull it in.

CLANG "ow!" Ken;s head collided with the metal center of the table and he could not mask the cry of pain. He clapped his hand over his mouth but it was too late. He could hear the wolf creature growling again, and it was getting closer.

THUD! Kevin jumped as the table shook. Through the thick white fabric of the table skirt, he could make out a dark figure landing next to him and heard scratching and sniffing coming from above him. Then his heart quickened as the figure knelt down and began sniffing the floor. The creature growled again and, to Ken's horror, reached out with what looked like a clawed hand to grasp the edge of the table skirt, like it was going to lift it.

* * *

**Oooo! Ken's in trouble! Don't you just love these moments when the hero is seconds away from being discovered by the monster?**

**Next chapter: Ken may or may not escape from the creature and the siblings may or may not make an amazing discovery!**

**Let me know what you think! Seriously, your replies are what keep me writing, SO PLEASE DON'T STOP REPLYING!**


	6. Chapter 5

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(Okay everybody! New chapter coming your way!)**

**Ch 5**

Ken's eyes widened as he heard the creature growl. Terror raced down his spine as he saw the outline of a clawed hand grasp the edge of the tablecloth and start to lift it. A few more seconds, and he'd be exposed. _Oh no! OH NO!_ Ken's mind wailed as he curled into a ball and squeezed his eyes shut. He knew that normal wolves didn't usually attack people, but a werewolf like creature, that was different.

"_CK. Come in. Do you read?"_ Ken's eyes snapped open as a crackly voice reached his ears. It sounded like a woman speaking through a radio. He saw that the creature appeared to have frozen. "_CK. Come in. Do You Read?"_ The voice repeated, this time more urgently. Ken was about to open his mouth, when the creature suddenly shifted and, to Ken;s amazement, responded.

"_This is CK, what's happening?"_ It spoke in a voice that was barely a growl.

"_We've spotted police, heading your way_" The woman replied._  
_

"_ETA?"_

_"At least one minute. Did you take care of the chef?"_

"_Oh yes"_ Ken shuddered as he heard the unmistakable sound of pleasure in the creature's response.

"_Then find the others and get out of there, NOW!"_ There was a click. The creature remained where it was for a few seconds, then dropped the tablecloth and moved away. Ken heard the squeak of the kitchen door, followed by a lot of growling and clacking of claws, then dead silence.

For a few moments, Ken remained frozen, then slowly, he lifted up the tablecloth and peeked out into the wrecked dining room. Seeing no one, he crawled out from under the table.

"Jackie? You okay?" He called out, keeping his voice down as he scanned the dining room.

Jackie's head popped up from under a table. "I'm fine" She said shakily, crawling out from her hiding place. "But that was seriously scary."

"Tell me about it" Ken took a deep breath and tried to stop his knees from shaking. "That 'creature' almost found me. I was almost werewolf chow"

At the mention of 'chow', Jackie's eyes suddenly grew wide. "Oh no! The Chef!" She squeaked and bolted towards the kitchen with Ken on her heels. Both siblings burst through the double doors. The kitchen was empty. The chef's tall white hat lay on a table, partially crumpled, but there was no sign of the man. "Where'd he go?" Jackie glanced around.

"There's no blood. Hopefully he got away" Ken glanced towards the back door of the kitchen leading outside, which was partially open. Through it, the siblings could hear the wailing of police sirens, getting louder every second.

"You know, there's something about those creatures that I don't get." Ken stated as the two siblings headed back into the dining room to meet the police.

"What's that?" Jackie asked, looking confused. Ken described the conversation he had overheard.

"So _that's _why the creature left? It got a radio call about the police?" Jackie frowned and her eyes squinted, the look the always got when she was really confused. "Since when do werewolves use radios?"

"About as often as they have green fur" Ken replied, recalling the greenish fur on the clawed hands that were gripping the tablecloth, as they walked outside and were met by several police officers, who led them to a waiting car. "Sis, remember the news, how that research laboratory was attacked by two man-sized barn owls? And now, a restaurant is ransacked by three werewolves?"

"You're saying there's a connection between these things?" Jackie's eyes widened.

"What I'm saying is..." Ken was interrupted as an officer walked over to them. Ken smiled as he recognized the man. It was Officer Forrest, a good-hearted member of the police force, and a fellow animal lover. He was a family friend.

"Hey Ken, Jackie, You two okay?"

"We're fine. Just a little shaken up" Ken replied.

"Um hm. You two didn't happen to see what occurred in there, did you?" The officer's eyes suddenly narrowed and he flicked his head towards the darkened restaurant.

Ken and Jackie glanced at each other. "No not really, why? Didn't any of the other diners tell you?" Ken asked, trying to sound calm.

The man grunted and shook his head. "We could only find a few of them." He nodded towards a dozen people who were gathered around a trio of officers and the police chief, jabbering away non-stop. "And as you can see, they're not being very helpful." He sighed. "They keep muttering about werewolves attacking the restaurant and demand protection, even though they said the creatures never even looked at them." He snorted. "Cowardly biggots" He muttered, making Jackie giggle. Officer Forrest smiled.

"Actually" Jackie spoke up. "We didn't _see_ anything, but we _heard_ growling coming from the kitchens. We thought an animal had gotten loose back there" Ken shot his sister a warning look. _Don't tell him!_

Officer Forrest took this down. "Interesting" He muttered. Jackie shot her brother a look that clearly stated _why not?_

_Because he'll think we're crazy!_ Ken yelled mentally. Just then another officer ran up.

"Got anything, Bucky?" Forrest asked.

"Well, everyone's accounted for, except for a visiting chef. Monsieur Gateaux." As the deputy spoke, Ken's mind flashed back to the frightened chef. "But there's somthin' else you gotta see"

Officer Forrest's eyes narrowed as the man pulled out one of the restaurant's menus. "You know removing evidence from a crime scene is..."

"Just read it" The younger officer shoved the paper at him. Officer Forrest's eyes scanned the page, widened in what seemed like horror, then narrowed into hostile slits.

"I don't believe it" He growled, handing the paper back to the younger man. "Has the chief seen this?"

"No, not yet."

"Do me a favor, and show him. Then radio headquarters, get an APB out on Monsieur Gateaux. We need to find him." The officer opened his mouth, but Forrest cut him off. "Just do it!" He barked, his tone surprising the kids. The man nodded and dashed towards the chief. Upon seeing the menu, the Chief frowned and began speaking rapidly into his radio.

"Of all the dirty, rotten, no-good..." Officer Forest's fists were clenched so hard his knuckles were turning white.

"Officer Forest, what's wrong?" Jackie asked.

"What was on that menu?" Ken asked.

The officer took a deep breath and gave the kids a sad look. "You kids know I'm a bird lover, right?" Ken and Jackie nodded. They remembered that officer Forrest was a bird watcher and raised turkeys and pheasants as a hobby. "Well, guess what this restaurant was serving tonight?"

Ken and Jackie glanced at each other, not quite sure what the officer was getting at. "Um, roasted quail?" Jackie finally guessed. Officer Forrest shook his head.

"Peking duck?" Ken guessed. Officer Forrest shook his head again

"Pheasant pot pie?" Ken tried again. Another shake.

"Baked owl in honey sauce?" Jackie piped up, making everyone glance at her. "What?" She asked innocently. "I'm just naming possible dishes"

"That last one would probably be illegal." Officer Forrest reminded her, then his gaze darkened, "As was the meal they were serving tonight"

"What was it?" Ken asked, though now he wasn't sure he wanted to know.

Officer Forrest knelt down and said, quietly, but clearly. "Grilled. American. Condor"

Jackie gasped in horror, her hands flew to her mouth and her eyes widened to the size of saucers. Ken could have sworn he heard his brain short-circuit and he felt as though someone had kicked him in the stomach. "No" He moaned, suddenly feeling sick.

"Yes" Officer Forrest growled as he straightened up. He glanced around, then said "I don't mind telling you kids, but if there _were_ werewolves in that restaurant, they targeted the right guy. If they don't rip that chef to pieces, _I_ just might. Come on, I'll drop you two off" With that, he turned and staked towards his patrol car, muttering something about "bird-killers."

Ken and Jackie remained where they were, then they slowly turned to look at each other. The horror in each sibling's face was unmistakable and for a few minutes neither spoke.

"Why would a chef _do _that?" Jackie finally whimpered.

Ken slowly shook his head. Then his expression suddenly twisted into a thoughtful frown. "Another connection" he mused.

"What?" Jackie blinked.

"Think about it. An animal testing lab gets attacked by a pair of man-sized owls. A few days later a pack of wolf-creatures attack a restaurant, destroy the dining area, without harming a single guest, then moves to the kitchens and targets, out of all the staff, a visiting chef who just _happens_ to be serving a dish made from an endangered animal?" Ken reasoned as they started walking towards Officer Forrest's car.

Jackie's horrified look was replaced by one of understanding. "You're right. No way its a coincidence" She determined. "You think these attacks were planned?"

"I don't know, but something's going on here, and we've gotta find out what" Ken replied, gently swatting a buzzing insect away from his ear as he walked.

* * *

"_You think these attacks were planned?_"

A pair of humanoids wearing black suit suits with colored lining and oblong, insect-like helmets sat watching Ken and Jackie on a monitor screen.

_"I don't know, but something's going on here, and we've gotta find out what"_ Ken's voice made the orange-lined humanoid clench a fist and pound it on the desk.

"Subborn" She muttered.

"Maybe" Her companion, who had purple lines on her suit, commented.

"I admit their hearts are in the right place" The orange lined humanoid spun in her chair. "But the _last_ thing we need is..."

"LOOK OUT!" The purple-lined humanoid suddenly screamed, pointing to the monitor as a giant hand appeared on the screen. The orange-lined humanoid sung a joystick and the hand ghosted off the screen, which now showed and aerial view of the two children.

"Whew" she sighed before pressing a button and speaking into a microphone. "KO to MK, come in MK"

After a few seconds, a speaker in the panel crackled to life. _"MK to KO, we read you. Everyone's fine" _

"Then you boys better get back here, asap" The humanoid paused, then added. "And bring AB with you"

"_What? Why me?"_ A girl's voice blared through the speaker.

"Because there's something we need to discuss with you about" She answered before hanging up. The two humanoids nodded, then glanced up to the screen in time to see Ken and Jackie ride off in Officer Forrest's police car.

* * *

**Dum Dum Dummmmm!More action! More mystery! What did you like so far? What do you want to see happen next. LET ME KNOW!**

**Next chapter: Ken begins an investigation and makes a discovery. Meanwhile, Jackie and Amy witness another attack, and help an unlikely ally.**

**Keep those reviews coming! It's the best way to keep the chapters coming!)**


	7. Chapter 6

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(Sorry for the delay, I've been absorbed with classes and novels and work, and all that Jazz. Anyway, here's the next chapter!)**

**Ch 6**

"I should have been there!" Ken winced at the volume of his father's voice. Officer Forrest had dropped them off an hour ago and he had just finished telling his dad all that had happened.

"I'm glad you _weren't_ there, Dad. I wouldn't want _you_ getting hurt." Ken argued.

"Did you see what it was that attacked the restaurant? From what Officer Forrest said, it sounded like some sort of animal" His father asked, turning to look at him.

Ken opened his mouth to answer than paused. Somehow, he didn't think telling his father that werewolf creatures had almost gotten him would help. "No" He finally said, "But I remember hearing a lot of growling as we left the restaurant. I told Jackie I thought a wild dog had gotten loose." Technically this was _kinda_ the truth, but he still felt a small flush of guilt.

"This just doesn't make sense" His father mused as he sat back down at the table and picked up his fork. "Even _I_ know that most wild animals stay clear of people."

"It's really strange" Ken agreed, before standing up. "May I be excused please?" His father nodded, opening the newspaper. Too wired from what happened to sleep, Ken wandered into the living room. He saw Jackie setting up the video game system.

"Hey" She said, seeing him. "you wanna play Bat Attack?"

"You know it!" Ken exclaimed, catching the control that Jackie threw to him. As they plopped into beanbag chairs, the game started.

_-This game has been brought to you by JZ Video Games. JZ Games: Nature's Playground-_ Following the announcement a logo appeared on the screen, a J and a Z fashioned in such a way that it resembled a bird's head.

"'Nature's Playground' I love that slogan" Jackie exclaimed as the bat attack screen, showing bats on one-side and insects on the other, came on.

"Dibs on the Brown Bat!" Ken clicked a button almost as soon as Jackie stopped talking.

Jackie sighed. "Fine. I'll take the Vampire Bat" She clicked another button. Two bat avatars appeared on the screen, one brown and one black.

"Hey Jackie?" Ken asked, a few minutes later.

"Hmm?" Jackie mumbled.

"I just realized something" Ken clicked his controller furiously as he spoke, watching his brown bat avatar chase after a swarm of glowing mosquitoes.

"That you're nowhere near as skilled catching mosquitoes as a _real_ brown bat?" Jackie teased watching as a mosquito zoomed out of Ken's screen.

"You're one to talk" Ken countered. "A _real_ vampire bat creeps up on sleeping animals, it doesn't _jump_ on them, thereby waking them up"

"That was only _ one_ time!" Jackie exclaimed as she tried to make her vampire bat crawl towards a sleeping chicken, but she hit the button too hard and the bat practically jumped up, smacking into the chicken's leg. The chicken gave an alarmed squawk and ran off.

"And now it's two times" Ken sniggered. Jackie glowered at him. "No, I was talking about what happened at the restaurant"

"What about it?" Jackie asked as she landed her avatar in the grass near a cow.

"It's about Allison" Ken confessed. "Remember when I suggested that we go investigate, and she immediately objected? Did you see the look on her face? She looked alarmed. Something about that just doesn't seem right"

"Well duh! I would be too, considering what was down there" Jackie mused, rolling her eyes.

"But she didn't know there were werewolves in the kitchen, how could she?" Ken argued.

Jackie frowned. "Hmm, You _did_ say you heard a girl's voice on the radio." She thought aloud as her vampire bat landed softly on the back of the cow. Instantly her energy gauge began to rise. "You think it could have been Allison?"

"It didn't _sound_ like her, though" Ken admitted.

Jackie scowled, but she didn't say anything else. A few minutes later their father came in and announced that it was bedtime.

The next morning, Jackie went to school alone, because Ken had an unavoidable doctors appointment and would be dropped off later. As soon as Jackie stepped out of her father's car, she heard a shrill scream. She whirled around, only to be ambushed by a mob of flying brown hair. Strong arms wrapped themselves around her in a crushing bear-hug. "Oh Jackie, are you okay? I tried calling you after I got home, but you didn't answer! I was _soooooo_ worried!" A shrill voice cried, almost in her ear.

"I'm...fine...Amy" Jackie gasped, trying to wriggle out of her best friend's crushing grip. Amy released her and stepped backwards, still looking worried. "I just forgot to call you" Sensing eyes on her, Jackie looked back to see her father watching with an amused twinkle in his eye. "Yes dad? Did you want something?"

Her father's smile widened, which made Jackie's face flush. "Have a good day" He said simply before driving away.

"Oops, sorry" Amy squeaked, looking at the ground.

"It's okay" Jackie placed a hand on her shoulder. "You should have seen how worried he was last night" She started to laugh, but stopped when she noticed a pained look on Amy's face. "What's wrong?"

"Jackie, I'm..." Amy paused, and Jackie noticed that her eyes were wet. "I'm really sorry."

"Sorry? For what?" Jackie asked.

"For leaving you." Amy's mouth quivered. "I'm your best friend and I just up and left you. When I realized that you weren't with us, I tried to go back to look for you, but Allison didn't let me. she practically had to drag me away from the building." Amy rubbed her arm. "She is _a lot_ stronger than she looks. She practically tackled me when I tried to go in through the kitchen door"

Jackie suddenly frowned. "Amy, You said you tried to go through the kitchen door, right? Did you hear anything?" Amy looked at her, surprised, but she shook her head. "Nothing, no growling, or anything?" Jackie pressured. Amy shook her head again, then her eyes widened.

"I never saw what happened inside the restaurant, did you see what happened?" She asked, starting to look panicked.

Jackie didn't answer right away as they strolled across the playground. She was debating how much she should say. Amy was her best friend, they did almost _everything_ together, but Jackie wasn't sure that telling Amy that Ken and her had almost been attacked by a trio of werewolf creatures would help. Knowing Amy, she would panic and make a big fuss, which was something Jackie did _not_ want.

"Jackie?"

"What?" Jackie snapped out of her dilemma.

"Did you see what happened?" Amy repeated, gazing at her intently as they entered the hallway.

"Not...really" Jackie replied as they walked to her classroom. Amy looked at her quizzically, but didn't ask anymore. Jackie felt a stab of guilt strike her heart. Technically she _had_ told the truth, she had been hiding under a table for part of the time. But that didn't help Jackie feel any better. She sighed as the teacher began to talk. She really wanted to tell Amy what had happened, but for some reason her mind was screaming at her not to.

Jackie's sullen mood lasted through her first two classes, and got so bad that she actually avoided Amy at morning break. She hung out near the school gates, watching Amy enjoy a game of four-square. Jackie had never understood the concept of that game, but it sure was popular.

"What are you doing here?" Jackie looked up to see Ken standing in front of her, his head cocked to one side.

"I go to school here" Jackie remarked.

"Funny, I meant what are you doing _here?_ As opposed to being with Amy, who is over _there!_" Ken nodded at Amy, who had just moved to the king position on the four-square court.

Jackie sighed. "I'm... I'm feeling...you know" Jackie shot a glance at Ken, hoping he would get the message. From the way her brother was smiling, he seemed to understand.

"Let me guess, Amy asked you about what happened at Animal Junction. Part of you wants to tell her, but part of you doesn't. Am I right?" Ken mused.

"She's my best friend, I tell her everything" Jackie whined. "And yet I can't tell her what happened"

"Because you don't know how she'll react, do you?"

Jackie nodded, feeling more glum than ever. fir a few minutes, both of them stood there. Jackie finally glanced up at her brother and smiled, then frowned. Something was moving on Ken's hat. "Um Ken? you've got something on your..." She mimed a hat.

For a second, Ken looked confused, then he slowly reached up and pulled off his hat, taking great care not to jostle it too much. Perched on the blue fabric was a blue-green insect with a shiny shell, kind of like a beetle. Jackie squinted, getting a closer look. She glances up at Ken's startled gasp and sees his eyes widen in interest, and something else, recognition.

* * *

"What are they doing?" A group of humanoids gathered around a screen. One of them fiddled with a control nodule in its hands.

"They look like they're...Oh snap they see the drone!" The one holding the controls answered, his voice suddenly panicked.

"Fly!" A third one yells. The controller pressed a button and the screen jumped.

* * *

Without warning, the insect suddenly spreads transparent wings and jumps into to air. Ken drops his cap and both kids lunge for the beetle, but the insect is too quick for them. It dodges both their attempts and then darts off towards the greenhouses.

"C'mon, we can't let that bug get away!" Ken dashes off after it, with Jackie in hot pursuit.

"Why? What's so special about that insect?" Jackie yelled as they chased it towards the school greenhouses.

* * *

Amy had just been booted off the four-square court when she saw Ken and Jackie race around the side of the building.

"Where are they going?" She said to herself. Then she shrugged and took off running after them.

* * *

"Remember, back at Animal Junction, I swatted a bug away from my face. It looked just like that one" Ken explained as they rounded the corner. He lunged at the insect, but missed.

"So?" Jackie had no idea how her brother could even see the beetle, let alone recognize it. The insect was zipping so quickly it looked like a transparent blur.

"Trust me, I brushed it away several times. I'd know it if I..._SAW IT!"_ With those last words, Ken lunged again, falling heavily to the ground. Jackie heard a small crunch and winced.

* * *

The three humanoids cried out as the video screen tumbled and went dead, the image being replaced by a black-and-white wall of static.

"Well, there goes the drone" The green-lined one snapped.

"The girls are _not_ going to like this" The blue-lined one agreed.

The orange-lined humanoid sighed as he placed down the controller. "That kid certainly has quick reflexes." He admitted.

"And a good eye" The blue-lined one commented.

"Maybe they were right about him" The green-lined humanoid stared back at the screen.

* * *

"Ken, are you okay?" Jackie knelt beside her brother.

Before Ken could answer, they both heard footsteps and looked up as Amy rushed up to them.

"What's going on here?" She demanded, her voice slightly muffled by panting.

"Just-uh-doing dome bug collecting." Jackie smiled at Amy, but the frown on Amy's face told them she wasn't buying it.

"We were chasing after this unusual insect" Ken explained, grimacing as he rose to his knees. "Oh great, I think I killed it" He muttered, staring down at his shirt. Sure enough, there was a dark stain in the middle of the brown fabric.

All three kids looked down at the smashed insect, its insides strewn all across the grass, catching the weak sunlight to sparkle.

"Huh, I didn't know insect innards sparkled like that" Amy observed.

"I don't think they do" Jackie narrowed her eyes as she and Ken knelt down for a closer look.

Ken's eyes suddenly widened. "This isn't an insect!" He announced. "It's some kind of robot that looks like one!"

"What?" Amy gasped. Jackie shook her head.

"Great, now you've wrecked someone's property. Nice going bro" She chided. Ken shot her a look before looking down again.

"Look here" He pointed to the 'insect's' head. "I'm pretty sure this was a camera of some sort"

"Camera, like a spy camera? Someone was _spying_ on you?" Amy exclaimed, hands covering her mouth.

Ken opened his mouth to reply, when suddenly a piercing scream cut through the air. As the threesome looked up, the scream came again.

"Who was that?" Amy asked, leaping to her feet.

"Come one, let's find out" Leaving the smashed robot, the threesome dashed towards the glass domes of the school greenhouse.

* * *

**I know, I know, I promised another creature encounter in the last chapter, but this story just writes itself so well that I can't help providing more detail in the in-between parts. Just bear with me. **

**I apologize if my knowledge of four-square is off. I've watched it be played many times, but never quite got the hand of it. Plus the long lines of kids waiting to play kinda threw off my interest. **

**In the next chapter, Amy and Jackie help an unlikely friend and an important decision is made. Stay tuned to find out what happens next! **


	8. Chapter 7

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(And here we are agian! Since you have graced my story with your eyes, I shall grace you with a new chapter!)**

**Ch 7**

Ken, Jackie, and Amy reached the greenhouses as another scream pierced the air.

"That sounded like it came form inside" Amy reasoned.

"That scream sounded familiar" Ken frowned as he peered past the glass walls trying to see inside, but they were all fogged over. The scream came again. Ken's eyes suddenly lit up. "Isn't that Desmona?"

"You're right" Jackie's eyes widened, then she looked confused. "What's Desmona doing in the greenhouse? She hates nature"

"I don't know" Ken replied as another scream seeped through the thick stone wall. "But we'd better see what's going on" The threesome dashed around the corner of the building to a door that led into the hallway next to the greenhouse door. When Ken reached the door and tried to open it, he discovered that it wouldn't budge.

"Desmona! Can you hear us?" Amy yelled, pounding on the wooden door. As if in response, Desmona screamed again, her voice louder and more panicked. While Ken tried to open the door and Amy called out again, Jackie leaned over her brother and peered through the glass viewing strip into the greenhouse. She saw lots of gray wispy fog, which was very unusual. "Why would there be fog in the greenhouse? It can't be _that_ humid in there"

"I don't know, but this door is locked" Ken grunted from below as he paused in his struggle. "What we need is..."

"YIKES!" Jackie suddenly cried out and leapt backwards with a look of alarm on her face.

"What is it?" Amy asked.

"There's something in there" Jackie exclaimed.

Ken rolled his eyes. "We _know_ someone's in there, we can hear her screaming"

"No!" Jackie exclaimed. "There's something _else_ in there, something besides Desmona, something...not human" Jackie saw the humor fade from her brother's eyes.

"Are...you...sure?" He asked slowly, putting emphasis on each word. Jackie could see that he was flashing back to what happened at Animal Junction, or rather, what had _almost_ happened.

"I'm positive" Jackie replied, her voice serious. "Unless Desmona's eyes suddenly became purple with black slits for pupils"

Amy looked from one solemn face to another. "Okay, you two are starting to scare me! What's going on?"

The siblings seemed to snap out of it. "Right" Ken bit his lip, a sign that he was thinking quickly. "I'll go find Mr. Rubin, he should have the keys. You two see if you can find another way into the greenhouse, or at least try to see what's happening in there."

"Right" Jackie nodded. Ken turned and sprinted down the hallway towards the teacher's offices.

"Desmona, can you hear us?" Jackie yelled through the keyhole. There was only silence in response.

"Well, she stopped screaming, that's a good thing, right?" Amy suggested, but her smile was forced and the worry in her eyes was clear.

WHAM! Both girls jumped as something thudded into the other side of the door. Glancing up, Jackie and Amy saw Desmona's frightened eyes staring back at them through the glass slit.

"Desmona, are you okay?" Amy yelled.

"Get me out of here!" The frightened girl screamed, Jackie and Amy could barely hear her through the thick walls.

"The door is locked!" Amy screamed, pointing towards the door handle. Desmona glanced down and nodded, then suddenly froze, her eyes growing as wide as dinner plates. Slowly, the girl turned around to glance behind her, and screamed so loud that Amy and Jackie had to cover her ears.

"I swear that girl can break glass" Amy moaned. Desmona, still screaming, threw herself against the door, jerking the handle back and forth roughly. Jackie had just reached for the handle when she heard a click, and both girls darted backwards as the door flew open, expelling Desmona in a cloud of foul-smelling smoke. Still screaming like a banshee, she ran down the hall.

Amy coughed as the smoke reached her ears. "Tar based cigarette smoke?" She stammered. "Doesn't she know that stuff's dangerous?"

"You recognize that?" Jackie asked

Amy shrugged. "My Aunt and Uncle are massive smokers, even though I've tried to get them to stop"

"Some people never learn" Jackie mused as she fished a handkerchief from her pocket.

Amy's eyes widened as Jackie began to tie it over her mouth and nose. "You're not actually going _in_ there, are you?"

"Amy, Desmona doesn't scare easily. Something in there freaked her out, and I'm guessing it wasn't the petunias." Jackie stood up, her makeshift filter in place.

"But the smoke..." Amy cautioned, but Jackie darted in anyway.

"Ulgh" She groaned. Even under her makeshift filter the smell was almost overpowering. Clouds of smoke were seeping all along the floor of the greenhouse, and there was a thin haze in the air. The whole room stank of tobacco and tar. "I _so_ do not want to be in Desmona's shoes right now" She mused, thinking of how much trouble the girl would be in when the principle found out. Not seeing anything out of the ordinary, Jackie turned to go, then froze as a noise reached her ears, a steady rattle-like hiss. Jackie's insides turned to ice as she recognized the sound, _a rattlesnake warning! _"But that makes no sense" She whispered to herself. "Why would there be rattlesnakes in _here?"_ No sooner had Jackie said this when, to her horror, she saw something move a few feet away from her. Slowly tilting her head, Jackie couldn't stop the gasp that escaped her lips. It was a rattlesnake's tail, still rattling, but the tail was orange, the rattle itself was a deep amber color, and the tail was _thicker around than Jackie's arm!_ As Jackie watched the large orange tail slowly slither away under a table of potted flowers she heard another hiss, _coming from behind her!_ "Oh great" She squeaked. "There's more than one" She knew that rattlesnakes were attracted to movement so, trying to keep her body still, she slowly craned her neck around to get a better look, and then wished she hadn't. Out of the corner of her eye, Jackie could see a large snake-like shape rearing over her, with what looked like clawed arms raised to strike.

"Jackie! Get out of there!" Jackie jumped as Amy called in from the front door. "Desmona's coming back with the principle!" But Jackie remained where she was. She knew that a rattlesnake could strike in the blink of an eye and did _not_ want to be bitten. Suddenly there was a hiss and a blur of motion at her shoulder and Jackie flinched, she couldn't help it, and darted towards the door, tripping on her feet and falling to the floor. She shut her eyes and braced herself, waiting for the pain of fangs to sink into her body, but it never happened.

_CREEAAAKKK!_ Jackie's eyes opened at the sound of one of the roof vents being opened. Glancing up, she saw two large serpentine shapes slither through the new opening. Their forms traveled down the outside of the greenhouses' glass wall and disappeared. For a moment, Jackie just sat there, staring wide eyed. Than she coughed as smoke found its way into her lungs. She leapt to her feet and raced to the door, emerging into the hall just as Desmona and Principle Robertson, a tall, thin man with glasses, arrived at the door. Principle Robertson's wrinkled his nose as he smelled the smoke and cast a suspicious eye over Jackie. Desmona, still frightened, clung to the man like a life preserver.

"Well?" Amy demanded. "Did you find anyone else in there?" Jackie shook her head.

"I'M TELLING YOU!" Desmona wailed. "THERE WERE SNAKES IN...!"

"OKAY!" Principle Robertson snapped, making Desmona quiet down. " Now, in an indoor voice, please tell me what happened"

"I was attacked by snakes in there!" Desmona gestured to the greenhouse. Principle Robertson raised an eyebrow, clearly not believing her. "I'm serious!"

"What's going on here?" Mr. Rubin had arrived, with Ken trailing behind him. He took one look inside the greenhouse, smelled the smoke, and whirled on the students, his fave livid. "WHO DID THIS?!"

Ken, Jackie, and Amy all looked at Desmona who began stammering uncontrollably, suddenly at a loss for words.

"I think Desmona's been smoking cigarettes in the greenhouses, Mr. Rubin" Jackie said what was going through everyone's mind.

Desmona flushed and spluttered angrily. "No I wasn't"

"Then what's that in your pocket?" Ken pointed to Desmona's jeans, where a crumpled cigarette packet was sticking out, the logo clearly visible. Both Mr. Rubin and Principle Robertson's faces darkened.

"You'd better come with me, young lady" Principle Robertson seized Desmona by the cuff and began to drag her away.

"But what about the snakes?" She wailed. "They're still in there!"

"Jackie, did you see any snakes in there?" Jackie felt all eyes turn to her. For a second, she felt like spilling everything, seeing the frightened look in Desmona's face, but then she remembered how arrogant and cruel she had been.

"No sir. I didn't see anything. I _heard_ something though" Everyone piped up at this. "I think one of the roof vent covers is loose." Jackie turned to Mr. Rubin.

The man nodded. "I'll take care of it. I need to ventilate this place anyway" He said, shooting a dark look at Desmona's retreating back as the principle marched her down the hall. "Are you guys okay?"

"Yep"

"We're fine"

"I'll live" Ken shot his sister a strange look after she finished speaking, but Mr. Rubin didn't seem to notice. As he headed inside the greenhouse and the three friends turned to walk away, Jackie met Ken's gaze, her worried feelings echoed on his face.

* * *

**(That Evening)**

Allison Baldwin was sitting at her desk typing up a letter to a researcher who was studying wolves, when suddenly...

_BZZRP! BBZZRRPP! _A strange vibrating noise came from her bag. Reaching inside, she pulled out a white rectangular device that looked similar to an Iphone. It had a dark screen, a series of buttons in the shape of a paw print, and a scanner on one side. Allison tapped the screen, which lit up showing a phone handset, then she pressed one of the buttons. "AB here, over"

_"KO to AB, are you in position?_" a figure wearing an insect-like helmet appeared on the screen.

"All set, has the council made a decision about our..." Allison paused before continuing "'security risk' yet?"

"_They have"_ The figure replied. "_Proceed"_

"Roger, over and out" Allison tapped the screen, which went dark. Setting the device down on her desk she picked up her cell phone, dialed a number and let it ring. "Hello, is this the Kalish residence?"

* * *

**Funny place to end the chapter, I know! But it keeps the suspense so well! Why is Allison calling the Kalish house, what exactly did Jackie see in the greenhouse? And who is this 'Council'?**

**Well, I could tell you now, but what fun would that be? You'll find out soon!**

**In the next chapter, Allison lures Ken and Jackie to the woods and a strange encounter, and a new enemy makes itself known. **

**It's great to see people are so interested in where this story is going! Of course, if you think you know, let me know and I'll tell you if you're right! **


	9. Chapter 8

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(Chapter number 8 coming at ya! I would have finished it sooner, but I've been under the weather)**

**Ch 8**

The next morning, As Ken and Jackie were eating breakfast, their father came in, gave a slight yawn and picked up a plate of pancakes off the stove. He kissed their mother, sat down at the table and gave a funny glance at Ken and Jackie. Ken, who was eating a plate of eggs, paused mid-bite. He knew that look. His father only had that kind of smile on his face when he had good news. His father noticed him looking and smiled again, wider this time. Ken mentally groaned. His father also enjoyed withholding good news from other people, just to tease them. Ken knew that his father was just waiting for him to ask what was up.

"Well, what is it?!" Ken finally exclaimed, startling Jackie. She gave him an angry look.

"Why Ken, whatever are you talking about?" His father asked in an innocent tone that fooled no one. Their mother chuckled. Jackie's glance turned from Ken to her father and her eyes widened when she saw his smile.

"You've got some good news, don't you?" Ken challenged. His father shrugged, but his smile grew bigger. Now Ken was feeling _very excited._

"Perhaps" His father teased and both Ken and Jackie groaned.

"Come on, you've got to tell us" Jackie begged. But her father didn't say anything else. Jackie gave Ken a smile of her own, then slowly stood up form the table and walked over to her father's side. "Come on daddy" She pleaded, her voice becoming cuter and more babyish as she spoke. " I have to know. Why are you being such a big ol'meenie? It's not nice to keep secrets from your daughter? Tell meeee, pweeesse?" As she finished, she gave her father a set of bambi eyes. Her mother placed a hand over her mouth in an effort to keep from laughing. Ken felt nausea rise up his throat, but he was also excited. Normally he hated when his sister got all babyish, but if it got dad to spill, he didn't mind.

His father met Jackie's baby-cute gaze unflinching, then he slowly tool one of Jackie's hands and placed it over her baby eyes. "Nice try" He said, still smiling. "Maybe I'll tell you after you tell me who taught you how to talk like that?" As he spoke, he slowly turned to glance at their mother, who tried her best to look innocent.

Ken snorted a laugh and smiled. It was true that in many species the female could be as motivational as the male, if not more so. His mother and sister were two examples of that. "Oh come on dad, stop torturing us and spill!" He urged.

"Yes. Pweeese" Jackie fluttered her eyelashes. Her father returned her gaze so intently that he didn't notice their mother sneaking up behind them, at least until her soft touch on his shoulders made him start.

"I think you _should_ tell them dear, after all, why keep good news like that a secret?" She agreed in a soft tone, massaging his father's shoulders.

"Keep what a secret?" Ken demanded, now beside himself with the urge to know what was going on.

"I got a call from someone named Allison last night" Their father began explaining. Ken gasped and Jackie's eyes gleamed with excitement. If Allison had called, it must be related to the Creature Corps.

"Well, what did she say?" Ken asked eagerly.

Their father paused for a moment, and looks confused. "Hmmm, I can't seem to remember" He said slowly, scratching his head.

"DA-AD!" Ken and Jackie snapped at the same time. Their father burst out laughing.

"Okay, Okay, don't bite my head off!" He laughed. He cleared his throat and straightened his tie. "She said that the Creature Corps was gathering to prepare for some sort of an event that. She asked if you were free to come help after-school."

"Really? YES!" Ken and Jackie exchanged a high-five.

"That's pretty much what I told her" Their father continued. "There should be a bus waiting outside the school this afternoon. She said to look for the Creature Corps logo."

Ken and Jackie were still excited when they arrived at school that morning. They met Amy at the gates, and she and Jackie imminently began chattering like a flock of guinea fowl. Ken strode past them, rolling his eyes. He was content to let his sister and his best friend talk.

"Excuse me, Ken?" Ken stopped as a nasally voice reached his ear. Turning, he saw a pale-skinned boy with thick, black-rimmed glasses approach. He wore a black sweater with a big red V on it, the symbol of Varmitech Industries. Ken felt a frown cross his face. He knew this kid, Ajay Torstyn, his parents were one of the primary investors of Zach Varmitech.

"Can I help you, Ajay?" Ken asked, sounding just as confused as he felt. Ajay had never exactly taken notice of him before. Like the techie groupies that flocked behind him, Ajay tended to stick to computers and calculators, and did not really enjoy nature or the outdoors.

"Yes, you can explain to me why your father shot down my father's plan!" Ajay glared at Ken, his eyes ablaze with hostility behind his glasses.

"Not this again, Ajay" Ken groaned. Earlier this month, Ajay's parents had wanted to turn the swampy land south of town into a shopping development, but a group of environmentalists, lead by Ken's father, had convinced the town council that doing this was dangerous for the town. Ken and Jackie had helped their father with his research and the town council had shot down the Torstyn's plan. "I already told you why building a mall in the swamp is a bad idea."

"Humor me" Ajay growled. "My numbers say otherwise and numbers do not lie" Ajay snapped his fingers and one of his groupies held out a laptop screen that is full of facts and figures and graphs and drawings. As Ken stared at the screen, Ajay launched into a lengthy anecdote about how he believed the mall would give the town income and jobs that it desperately needed, and that the swamp was the best place to do it, yadda yadda yadda. Ken's brain seemed to tone Ajay's voice out as he examined the graph.

"Hey! What's going on here?" Ken jumped as his sister suddenly appeared behind him.

"Hello Jackie, Amy" Ajay nodded to the two girls, a smug grin on his face. "I was just convincing Ken how wrong his father was to stop the development of the new mall"

"No you weren't" Ken's reply caused the grin to slide of Ajay's face like oil off water. "You were telling me how _you_ benefit from having the mall in this strategic location." Ken tapped the screen, bringing up a map of the swampland. "Nearly all the land in the surrounding area has already been purchased by your family. And the location would make it closer to the town that the current mall. How convenient for you." Ajay cheeks flushed crimson.

"Plus, as our father explained to the town board, this swampland is more than just a smelly slimy pit, it helps filter the water that runs into the waterworks and is a major habitat for a number of plants and animals that cannot live anywhere else, like Marshmallow plants and wood ducks." Jackie took over. "Also, all the excess water from the river during the rainy season has to go somewhere, if you pave over the swamp, where's the water going to go? Can anyone answer that?" She directed this last question towards Ajay's group of techies. None of them answered, but by the way that they were looking at Ajay and each other, Jackie knew they had reached the same conclusion she had.

"I can answer that" Amy spoke up. "It would run right down our streets, flooding our fair town, and your family would be blamed." She pointed at Ajay, who paled more than usual. "If you ask me, Ken and Jackie's father did your father a big favor."

Ajay didn't answer, he was shaking with so much anger he seemed to be vibrating. Snorting, he turned and stomped away.

"Way to tell him." Jackie placed a hand on Amy's shoulder.

* * *

As Ajay stormed across the playground, he felt his cell phone vibrate in his pocket. He picked it out.

"Hello? Oh Hi dad. No I couldn't convince Ken to change his mind. Should I move onto phase two?"

"_Yes"_ A low-toned voice crackled through the speaker. "Mr. Zach tells me the ship uses that area often, we _must_ secure it! Do what you can" Ajay signed off and watched the threesome walk towards the doors. He clenched his fists. They wouldn't be smiling for long.

* * *

**Uh oh! Sounds like Ajay and his father have a bone to pick with the Kalix family! And they're working with Zach Varmitech? Who knows where this could lead? (Actually I do, but why spoil the ending?)**

**In the next chapter, the kids are taken on a little 'field trip' full of surprises. **

**Can I just say, it's great to see all these positive reviews about my humble little writing piece? YAY! KEEP IT UP!**


	10. Chapter 9

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(Here I am again! With another chapter for you to peruse!)**

**Ch 9**

That afternoon, Ken and Jackie were one of the first out of the double front doors of the school. True to their father's word, they spotted a small white bus parked a little ways from the collection of large yellow school buses, the logo of the creature corps clearly visible in a side window.

While the other students gathered around the large yellow buses, Ken and Jackie crossed the road and approached the smaller white one. As they approached, the doors opened and Allison stuck her head out. "Hey there!" Glad you guys could come help us!" She called, backing up so they could enter.

"Glad to help. Thanks for inviting us" Ken smiled at her. She didn't smile back, which was a little odd. Instead she gave Ken a searching look, then gave Jackie the same look, then turned to sit down in the seat behind the driver, who was wearing a white shirt, dark slacks, and black sunglasses. He was also wearing a black baseball cap over his long curtain of red hair and had a small red goatee. He was also sleeping, leaning back in his seat. As Ken and Jackie climbed on, Allison tapped the driver on the shoulder and he shook awake. As they passed, the driver raised his dark glasses and gave Ken and Jackie the same searching look that Allison had just given them. Something about that made Ken pause, returning the driver's stare. The driver smiled and turned back towards the front of the bus and Ken felt Jackie nudge him in the shoulder, pointing to the very back, were Amy was waving wildly at them.

"Hurry! We're just about to leave!" Amy shrilled as Ken and Jackie plopped down onto seats next to her. Jackie happily started chatting with Amy, but Ken continued staring at the front of the bus, where Allison had just risen to her feat and appeared to be taking attendance on a clipboard. As she scanned the bus, her eyes locked with Ken's and she smiled, but there was something a little forced about the smile. As Ken watched, Allison, turned back and spoke with the driver, who started the engine. As the bus pulled away from curb and left the school grounds, Ken suddenly felt his excitement start to fade. He now felt a little worried.

As the bus sped on down the road, no one noticed a black car pull out a few seconds later and drive after it.

* * *

"Alright everyone!" Allison called out an hour or so later as the bus was passing through a wooded area by the big river. "We're here!"

"Where?" Someone called out as everyone glanced out of the windows. Ken glanced out the back and saw thick trees and marshy ground. The swampland.

"We've been asked by the Birdwatcher's association to help them with a survey." Allison explained as she began walking down the aisle of the bus, handing out clipboards, pencils, and cases of binoculars. "You'll be split into teams and your task is to monitor as many birds as possible." She explained. "You've each been given a section of the marsh to observe, it's been highlighted on the map on your clipboards." As she finished speaking, she came up to where Ken, Jackie, and Amy were sitting. She smiled at them, then handed Ken a clipboard and Amy another board. Ken glanced down at his board. A section of the marshland was highlighted in black. He frowned, then he glanced at Amy's map, and his frown deepened. Amy's section of the map was right next to where they were now, and Ken's section was on the other side of the trees. He glanced at Jackie and saw her frown too, she had realized the same thing.

"Oh, Amy" Allison's voice made them look up. "Since were an odd number, you'll be working with me, okay?" Amy nodded, but she looked crestfallen and gave Jackie and Ken a despairing look.

"Well, you all have your assignments. Let's get to it!" Allison called and there was a flurry of activity as people scrambled off the bus and began separating, chatting among their partners. Amy reluctantly followed Allison towards a small outlet across from where the bus was parked. Ken and Jackie, meanwhile, started walking down the dirt road, feeling somewhat forlorn.

"So, you want to handle the binoculars or should I?" Jackie broke the silence as they rounded a bend and the bus disappeared from view.

"You go ahead" Ken mused as he flipped the map over to a list of bird pictures. "You've got better eyes than me" Jackie snorted, but raised the binoculars to her eyes and began scanning.

* * *

"_AB to Krew, come in"_

Allison's voice, barely a whisper, crackled through the speaker on the green-lined device. The figure lurking in the treetops, flicked a lizard-like tongue out, tasting the air as it reached for the device attached to its wrist.

"_CK here, over"_ The figure hissed, not taking its eyes off the road.

"_The targets should be heading your way now down the road"_ Hearing this, the creature narrowed its green eyes, which seemed to focus like twin telescopes.

_"I see them"_ It hissed as two figures suddenly appeared and its telescopic vision focused on Ken and Jackie, who had just turned the corner.

_"Then you know what to do_" Another voice squawked over the speaker.

_"Right"_ The lizard-like creature hissed again as it slowly clambered, face-down, down the trunk of the tree, its eyes never leaving the two kids as they passed by the tree trunk it was perched on. When the children's backs were turned, it gathered its muscles and leapt into the air. As it stretched its arms forward, membranes erupted from the creature's sides, becoming wings that caught the breeze, sending the creature gliding through the air towards the children. As it approached them, the creature hissed loudly, claws extended.

* * *

**Uh oh! Ken and Jackie'd better duck! What do you think is going to happen next? Please let me know!**

**In the next chapter: The field trip continues...**

**KEEP THOSE REVIEWS COMING!**


	11. Chapter 10

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(Whew! Sorry about not updating sooner! But I think you'll find this chapter worth the wait!)**

**Ch 10**

"What was that?" Jackie whipped her head around wildly.

"What?" Ken looked up from the clipboard. He glanced around as another hiss echoed around them. It seemed to come from _above_ them. Ken glanced up, and his eyes widened. "INCOMING!" He yelled.

"Huh?" Jackie glanced up, and her jaw dropped.

"DUCK!" They both screamed and hit the floor as a great green _thing_ dive-bombed them, hissing and spitting. As Ken dove to the ground, her felt something whack his backpack so hard he almost face-planted into the rocky gravel beneath him. There was another hiss as the thing flew over them and disappeared into the trees on the other side of the road.

"Uhhh" Ken groaned. "Are you okay, Jackie?" He asked as he strained to get to his feet.

"I'm okay" Jackie replied. "But what _was_ that?"

"Beats me" Ken dusted himself off. "Let's go find out"

"Are you _serious_?" Jackie exclaimed as Ken walked to the edge of the road. "That thing practically dive-bombed us and you want to _follow_ it?"

Ken paused and glanced back at his sister. "Yeah" He said simply before stepping off the road, into the murk, and walking towards the trees where the creature had disappeared, leaving Jackie standing there, her mouth open. When Ken reached the tree-line, he glanced back and saw Jackie standing there. "You coming or not?" He called over.

Jackie blinked and shook her head, like she was trying to wake up. "Yeah, I'm coming!" She called back and began splashing across the marshy soil to join him.

* * *

The creature shook its head to clear the stars it was seeing from its landing and glanced down towards the ground. Narrowing its eyes, it saw the two children crossing the marshy soil towards the tree where it perched. It could just hear the girl complaining about getting her sneakers wet, and it hissed in amusement. Then it reached out with a scaled claw and tapped the pod on its wrist

_"CK to KO, Engaged targets. They're heading my way"_ It reported

* * *

"Understood CK, keep them following you" The yellow-lined humanoid spoke into a microphone before shifting along the desk and tapping a few keys, a map of the swampland appeared on the big screen. Three blips appeared, one green, one red, and one pink. The green blip was slightly ahead of the red and pink blips, who were walking side-by-side. "Got them, range, 1 mile" She announced, spinning to face the purple and orange-lined humanoids, who nodded.

The purple humanoid nodded. "I'll inform the council" She turned and dashed though a door, which slid shut behind her. A red light above the door blinked on. The orange-lined humanoid sat down at one of the desks and typed a command. There was a high-pitched whine and then silence.

"Camouflage mode activated" He announced to the yellow-lined humanoid who nodded and returned to the microphone.

Pressing a blue button she spoke, "KO to MK, you see anything?"

* * *

High above the swampland, a large winged figure with blue feathers was gliding along the wind currents.

"_MK to KO"_ It squawked, flapping its wings as it scanned the swampland below. _"I'm going to lose visual on the targets any second. The rest of the children are spread out around the swamp, there don't seem to be any problems, the kids are all being watched carefully by the adults and there's...wait a second"_

Breaking off its report, the winged figure swooped around, narrowing its eyes, intensifying its eagle-like vision, which focused on something below like a pair of built-in binoculars

_MK, what's the matter?"_ A voice crackled in its radio, but the figure did not respond right away as it made another lazy pass, keeping high enough so that no one would see him.

"_A black car just pulled up, looks pretty ritzy to be way out here_" It reported. "_hang on, I'll send you a visual"_ Rotating its head, the figure tapped the side of its beak against its wing. There was a beep.

"_You're right_." A voice replied. "_Unless I'm mistaken, that's a Rolls Royce, A car like that belongs in a showroom, not a swamp_"

_"Wait, someone's getting out of it" _ The creature flew a little lower for a better look, than came to an abrupt halt in the air, its eyes wide with surprise as he gazed upon a black turtleneck and matching hair. "_Are you seeing this, its..."_

* * *

"ZACK VARMITECH!" The assembled humanoids hissed as they watched the pale teenager step from the car, his smug grin quickly fading as he smelled the swamp air

The door behind them hissed open and the purple-lined humanoid emerged, but froze when she spotted Zach on the screen. "Bah!" She exclaimed. "What is _he_ doing here?"

As they watched, Zach pulled a black device from his pocket, studied it and smiled again. Then he frowned again, looked at it closely, then looked up, straight into the screen, and his eyes widened in surprise

_"Uh oh, I think he sees me!"_ A voice crackled through the speakers, and then the image shifted to the swampland getting closer. "_I'm going to ground!"_

The orange-lined humanoid pressed a key. "No MK! Stay where you are!" The image roughly halted and a swathe of blue feathers cut across the screen.

"_But if Zach sees me..."_ The voice protested

"He probably knew we were here anyway, we need eyes in the sky now more than ever!" She cut him off. "Especially with those two kids here"

There was a pause, then the radio crackled to life. "_Right, and it looks like there's someone else with him"_ The screen shifted again and the car became visible, Zack was still there, glancing up at the sky, another person emerged. This man was tall with receding black hair. He wore a crisp black suit with a grey shirt under a flashy cape and carried a cane in one hand. His face was stern-looking and split with a sleezy-looking mustache.

"Who is that?" The orange-lined humanoid asked

"Checking" His friend tapped a few keys and an image came up. "I knew it. Baron Wasteland, one of the city's biggest developers, _and_ a guy who doesn't give two cents about the welfare of where he builds"

"What's he doing _here?"_

"I'm guessing it's not for the scenery"

"Agreed, not by the way he's looking around" The humanoids watched as the Baron glanced around, looking rather smug.

"We'll keep an eye on those two" The yellow-lined humanoid typed another key. "But we should really be focusing on our main objective."

"Right, We'd better get out there" The other two humanoids bolted towards one of the doors, which opened and shut automatically as they went through

The remaining humanoid turned back to her console "KO to CK, do you copy?"

* * *

"_CK to KO, I hear you, and I heard what MK was saying. Should we abort?"_ The green lizard-like creature hissed as it glided from one tree to another. It landed face-up on the trunk, scurried to the other side of the tree, flipped down facing the group, gazed at another tree some distance away, and leapt again, all in the space of 30 seconds.

_"No, we'll keep an eye on those two, just focus on getting those children away from the others."_

"_That shouldn't be very difficult"_ The creature glanced behind it to see Ken and Jackie running after it, jumping over roots, squelching through puddles and zipping around tree trunks. It smiled as it spoke again. "_You know, those two are keeping a pretty good pace. They're almost right behind me" _

_"Just get them to the pond, we'll take it from there" _KO's voice cut out. The creature nodded, then paused as it landed on the next tree. It glanced back, but couldn't see the children anymore. Narrowing its eyes, the creature waited as it heard footsteps. Ken, then Jackie burst into the clearing, pausing at a tree a few feet away. Both siblings were panting and looked sweaty. As they leaned against the tree, the creature took off and glided silently towards them. When it was a few feet away from them, it hissed loudly. Both teens looked up.

"WHAT THE?"

"GET DOWN!" Ken and Jackie hit the dirt, but as the creature sailed over them, it lightly smacked them both with its tail. It hissed in laughter as it glided away, carried by a strong gust of wind.

"Okay, what is with that thing?" Julie exclaimed, sounding as annoyed as she looked.

"Beast, me, you know it almost sounded like it was laughing at us" Ken observed as they rose to their feet.

Julie was fuming now. "Yeah? Well it's got a lousy sense of humor! C'mon, I wanna give it a piece of my mind!" Julie started running in the direction the lizard was gliding, Ken right behind her. As both siblings vanished into the trees, one of the humanoids appeared on the other side of the clearing, riding a vehicle that resembled a cross between a hover-bike and an insect, complete with two sets of buzzing wings. The humanoid watched the siblings face away into the shadows of the swamp and chuckled.

Reaching into the satchel attached to the bike it pulled out a patch of tan-colored fur. "Those two think chasing a man-sized Drago is intense, what's gonna happen when they see a two-legged Florida Panther chasing them?" With that, it placed a hand upon a circular symbol on its chest and the clearing was filled with orange light.

* * *

**YIKES! Can anyone say LOOK OUT?! How will Ken and Jackie get out of this one? Stay tuned to find out!**

**Next chapter, The siblings make an amazing discovery and must face a difficult decision**

**I love how people have been commenting on the suspense of my story. I've always considered the Wild Kratts Crew to be spies/superheroes because of what they do and how they do it. They kinda are, right?**

**As always, feel free to let me know how I'm doing. KEEP REVIEWING SO I CAN KEEP WRITING!**


	12. Chapter 11

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(My regards to the guest who mentioned Adrenaline, Red Bull, and ASAP on his review. THAT got my attention and this chapter done sooner!)**

**Ch 11**

As Ken and Jackie raced through the forest, Amy was standing at the edge of the swampland, gazing out over the murky, plant-filled water. Next to her, Allison was surveying the groups of two through her binoculars. Amy heard her counting under her breath as she focused on each group. Amy was also peering through binoculars, but she also wasn't looking for birds. She was looking for Ken and Jackie. They had been in her sight for a moment, but now she couldn't see them anywhere.

"Where are you" She muttered under her breath

"Where's who?" Amy jumped as Allison spoke. The black-haired girl stared down at her with a smile on her face. Even though Amy knew Allison was only a couple years older than her, she still felt short compared to her.

"Ken and Jackie. I saw them a minute ago, but now I can't see them anywhere" Amy replied.

Allison's smile grew wider, but Amy could swear she saw a spark of unease in the girl's eyes. "You are _supposed_ to be looking for birds, not your best friends."

"I know, I know" Amy groaned and started scanning the sky. _Wait!_ She froze, then panned backwards, locking onto something. _What is that?_ She squinted her eyes. It looked like some kind of bird. She could see it had long tapered wings, a falcon perhaps? It was too high up for her to see clearly, but she could ahve sworn its feathers were _blue?_ "Allison?"

"Yes?"

"Do you know a falcon species with...blue feathers?" Amy asked. Allison didn't answer right away. When Amy snuck a peak she saw Allison biting her lip. "Allison, did you hear me?"

"Yeah, I heard you." Allison burst out almost as soon as Amy stopped talking. "Blue feathers, huh?"

"Yeah" Amy felt surprised by Allison's response. "Right up there" she pointed to the speck circling high above. Allison raised her binoculars and gazed in that direction. She didn't say anything but Amy saw a frown appear on her face. "Can you see it?"

"I-I see something" Allison replied. "It's definitely a falcon of _some_ sort, but I can't ID it" Allison's frown deepened. "I've got an advanced bird book back on the bus. Keep an eye on that bird, I'll run back and get it. Okay?"

"Got it" Amy raised her binoculars back towards the sky, trying to find the blue bird. But she couldn't see it any longer. She groaned in annoyance, moving back and forth, trying to find it again. THUMP! Her foot struck something which shifted. Glancing down, she saw Allison's bag tip over. A book fell out of the open flap. The cover read _Advanced Guide of North American Birds_ in big letters. Amy frowned, this must have been the book that Allison was talking about, but if it was here the whole time, than why did Allison say it was back on the bus?

"I'd better go give it to her" Amy muttered to herself, setting her binoculars down, she picked up the book and headed towards the bus. As she approached, she saw that Allison was standing near the door of the bus, arguing with... "Zach Varmitech?" Amy paused, cocking her head in confusion."What's he doing here?" Fortunately the two were almost nose to nose, which allowed Amy to creep closer and crouch down behind the rear bumper of the bus.

"Look Zach, for the upteenth time, I'm telling you, I haven't heard of any 'Wild Crew'" Allison snapped, exaggerating on the last two words. Amy's eyebrows rose, what was she talking about?

Zach snorted, his eyebrows narrowed in annoyance. "Don't give me that, Allison, you know as well as I do that the Wild Krew are all about disrupting development, just like your little 'Creature Corps' are" Zack's mocking tone of the group name made Amy want to slug him. She didn't like violence, but honestly, she just wanted to knock those smug features off his face!

"Well, if you do ever find out who they are, please tell me because they sound like people I should meet." Allison replied. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a..." A cell phone ringtone interrupted Allison.

Zach growled and yanked a black device from his belt. "WHAT?" He yelled into the phone, making Amy snigger. She couldn't hear the response, but she watched Zack grow madder and madder. "No, I'll be right there" Fuming, he snapped the phone shut and turned back to Allison. "This isn't over, Ali dear"

"Looks over to me" Allison countered as Zack walked away. "And DON'T CALL ME THAT!" She yelled at his retreating back. For a minute, she just stood there, then she glanced around, whirled, and scampered quickly onto the bus.

Amy frowned as she straightened up. "What bit her?" She wondered aloud as she crept up to the door. She was just about to call out when she heard...

"AB to Tortuga, come in. Please respond" Amy froze when she heard Allison's voice. _Wait!_ she thought, _Wild Krew?_

_"KO to AB. We read you, what is it?"_ A static-filled voice replied and Amy's eyes widened. She quickly crouched down and slowly crept closer.

_"_Thought you should know, Zach was just here and he was hounding me about you guys, I think he's finally worked out the connection between the Corps and the Krew" Allison's voice was hard as stone and it made Amy shiver.

_"Mmm, that's not good news at all."_ he voice replied. _"If he knows the connection, he's probably worked out that we're here" _

"Please tell me you've rounded up the Kailix kids" Allison's next comment made Amy, who was by now halfway up the steps, gasp aloud. Fortunately, Allison didn't seem to hear her.

_"We're closing in as we speak"_ The voice replied. Amy's mind whirled with confusion and then anger.

"Are you _absolutely_ certain you want _them_?" Allison asked. "They're still kinda young"

"_Trust me, they're perfect. The bros have a good feeling about this"_ As the voice replied, Amy finished creeping up the steps and now stood by the driver's seat with her hands crossed and an angry look on her face

"You'd better make it fast. The sooner you hunt them down and take care of them, the better." Allison concluded and Amy could see her press a button on a smartphone-like device. Feeling enraged, Amy cleared her throat loudly. As Allison whirled around, her eyes widened. "Amy? What are you doing...?"

"Look what I found " Amy's voice was so tight she was practically spitting words out. She held up the birds book.

"Oh there it is, where did you find...?" Allison reached for the book but paused when Amy threw it onto the floor of the bus in between them, throwing Allison the meanest glare she could muster. Allison frowned, but made no effort to pick the book up.

"I'm confused" Amy growled, clenching her fists, her eyes smoldering. "I saw you tell Zack Varmitech that you didn't know anything about the 'Wild Krew'" She wiggled her fingers to emphasize the last point. "And then I hear you call someone, talking about the Krew and telling them to hunt down my friends!" Amy stomped her foot and Allison visibly flinched. "What's going on?" Amy demanded.

Allison opened her mouth but hesitated. "I'm sorry you heard all that Amy, and I would love to tell you what's really going on, but..."

"But? But what?" Amy demanded. "If you're not going to tell me what's goin on, maybe I should go ask Mr. Varmitech over there!" With that, Amy turned and stomped down the stairs.

"No Amy, wait!" Allison grabbed the girl's arm and the sudden unmasked fear in her voice made Amy pause. "Whatever you do, _please_ do not go to Zach Varmitech" Allison pleaded

"Then tell me what's going on" Amy turned around, and some of her anger started to melt when she saw pure terror expressed on Allison's face.

* * *

**Woah! Amy's getting all serious now!**** Where could this lead?**

**I know I know, I promised that Ken and Jackie would get somewhere this chapter, but I didn't want Amy's character to just fade away! Don't worry, in the next chapter we will definitely get some questions answered. **

**Stay tuned! Until next time!**


	13. Chapter 12

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(Oh, dear! I feel so embarrassed! I deserved to get chewed out! Sorry!**

**Claw has demanded a new chapter from me, and to hear is to obey!)**

**Ch 12**

"Yikes!" Ken skidded to a halt just in time to avoid the patch of swampy ground in front of him. Shoving an arm out, he stopped his sister from making the same entrance he almost did.

"Where is it?" Jackie glanced around. "Where's the creature?"

"I dunno" Ken replied, glancing around in every direction. He saw nothing but unbroken green swamp surrounding a small freshwater pond. "Looks like we lost it"

"Yeah" Jackie sighed, her shoulders slumped and she looked disappointed. "We'd better head back before Allison realizes we're gone"

"Good idea, let's go" The siblings started off, but stopped when they realized that each was walking in a different direction. "Aren't you coming?" Ken asked, pointing towards an opening in the trees.

"Isn't the road that way?" Jackie pointed in the opposite direction. Ken shook his head, but he looked uncertain. For a few seconds, the siblings stared at each other, then Jackie groaned and sank to her knees. "Great! Just Great! Not only have we lost the mystery creature, but now _we're_ lost!" She exclaimed. Ken put a reassuring hand on his sister's shoulder.

* * *

_"CK to AV, are you in position?"_ The man-draco, who was hiding in one of the trees nearby, whispered into his comm.

_"Just need a few more seconds."_ A girl's voice replied. A few seconds later, she came back on _"OK, it's set. CK, you and JZ drive them towards me, I'll do the rest"_

_"Let's rock"_ The draco looked down to see a bipedal wildcat slink through the trees. It paused to glance up at the man-lizard and winked. CK nodded back and the panther turned towards the clearing and growled loudly

* * *

Ken and Jackie jumped as a sinister growl cut through the air.

"What...was._..that?"_ Jackie asked fearfully as she slowly got to her feet.

"I don't know" Ken replied, keeping his voice down as he scanned the small clearing, his eyes narrowed. "But I'm guessing it wasn't something we want to meet" As if to prove his point, the growl came again, and this time it was much louder and...closer. Ken froze as his ears pinpointed the source of the growl, _right behind him!_

_"_Uh, Ken?" Jackie squeaked, her voice super high pitched with fear. "There's something behind us, isn't there?"

"Sounds like it" Ken muttered, wincing as another growl tore through the air. Jackie jumped with an "eep" her hands covering her mouth. The two siblings exchanged looks, the terror of the other clear in her eyes. Slowly, they turned to look behind them. Ken's eyes widened and he heard Jackie gasp in either amazement or terror, or both.

Standing behind them was a fearsome-looking bipedal cat. It had a sleek-humanoid figure with black fur with lines and patches of orange. Five-fingered hands were clawing the air, made more fearsome by the sharp-looking claw on each finger. A black-and-orange tail lashed from side to side, indicating the creature was angry about something, as if the growling it was doing was not hint enough. The cat's face was similar to a panther's, it was black with orange on the neck, ears, and around the eyes. The creature's eyes were dark brown and a tuft of dark orange hair stood up in the center of its forehead. For a few minutes, the creature and the Kalix siblings stared at each other. Then the creature growled again, exposing sharp-looking teeth, and swiped the air with one of it's clawed hands. Jackie jumped backwards on reflex and the creature narrowed its eyes at her and growled again.

"Jackie, do not run" Ken cautioned his sister in a low voice, barely a whisper. "If you run, it'll start hunting you"

"Well, I don't think staying still is going to help us either." Jackie countered in a low-but-tight voice. "Any bright ideas?"

The panther growled again and took a step forward, causing both siblings to take a step back. It stepped forward again, and as Ken stepped backwards again, he noticed that the Panther's padded feet made little noise on the swampy floor.

"Okay" Ken whispered to his sister. "Start moving sideways towards the trees. Go slow" Ken frowned as he saw the panther's ears twitch and it growled again as soon as he had stopped talking. He stepped slowly to the side, and next to him, Jackie did the same. The panther growled, and its brown eyes narrowed, but it didn't move towards them again. Instead, it slowly crouched down until it was practically squatting. Ken could see the muscles tensing beneath the black-and-orange coat. It tail twitched softly and Ken could see its eyes focusing and hardening. _Uh oh!_

"Ken, I think it wants to hunt us anyway" Jackie's voice was to taught it sounded like a mouse squeaking. The panther's ears twitched again and it growled again, this time at Jackie.

Before Ken could respond, there was a sudden hiss that came from the trees near their right. A hiss that sounded very familiar. Slowly turning, Ken and Jackie saw a man-sized green lizard creature from before staring at them from the trunk of a tree about three feet way from them and two feet above them. It's green-and-black body was pointed nose-down towards the ground and it was staring at them with vivid green eyes. Expanding from the sides of the creature were fin like membranes stretched between what must have been elongated rib bones.

Ken's jaw dropped as he recognized that wing design. "That's a..."

"Draco lizard" Jackie interrupted, whipping her head around to look at Ken, her mouth open and her eyes wide, shock and confusion were starting to replace the fear on her face. "I thought they lived in..."

Jackie never got to finish as that moment, the lizard spat angrily and dove off the tree trunk towards them. At the same time the bipedal panther roared and lunged at them, swiping with its claws. Ken and Jackie both screamed and threw themselves backwards out of the way. It looked like the two beasts would crash together, but the Draco spread its wing membranes and caught a gust of air, lifting it up and over the panther, which slammed into the ground. But barely two seconds later it was up on its feet again, and it lunged at the siblings again, who darted backwards. As they did, their feet struck a log.

"Woahhh!" The two siblings screamed as they fell backwards onto something soft. Seeing the panther rear up over them, claws extended, Ken tried to rise, only to discover that he couldn't get up. He struggled, slapping his arms against the ground to help push himself up, but he felt himself touch not swampy ground, but something soft and sticky, then empty air. When he tried to lift his hands, he discovered they were stuck tight to the sticky substance.

"Ken! I can't get up!" Jackie screamed.

"Neither can I!" Ken yelled back. He ran his fingers along the stuff holding him, and his blood suddenly chilled. "Hey, why does it feel like we're laying on a bed of silk?"

Jackie gulped before answering. "That's because..._WE ARE!"_ After that, Jackie gave an earsplitting scream that made Ken wince. The scream was followed by a strange chittering noise that made Ken glance up. His heart practically stopped. A giant purple-and-black spider was standing over them, strings of silk trailing from her two front-most legs. Before Ken could make a move, the spider pounced, seizing both of them with its hairy legs. Both siblings struggled, but between the strength of the spider's clawed feet and the stickiness of the web, they weren't going anywhere. Glancing around desperately, Ken noticed the panther and lizard were both watching from nearby, hissing and growling as if cheering the spider on. Before Ken could notice anything else, he was violently jerked sideways until he collided with his sister. Before either could move, the spider lifted them up and began spinning them around and around, faster and faster covering them with strong, sticky strands of silk. With little else to do, Ken and Jackie grabbed hold of each other and held on tightly. Through the roaring in his ears, Ken could head the growling of the panther, the hissing of the lizard, and the chittering of the spider, though they were muffled by the silk. His sister's screams were louder, but still muffled as she buried her face in his jacket. Ken held her closer and squeezed his eyes shut. Just before he passed out, he could have sworn he heard a voice say:

_"KO to AV, Zach is almost at your location, get out of there! NOW!"_

* * *

**WOW, what a way to go, spider snacks ! (At least they think they are)!**

**Again, I'm sorry about what happened, but when someone reviews under the name "Guest", I kinda don't really know what to think. (That is what you were upset about, right Claw? Just making sure)**

**Also, just in case this is sounding a little darker than what you might have been expecting, remember that we know that the Wild Krew are not real monsters, but the Kalix kids don't know that (yet) **

**Next chapter: The Kalix kids meet the Wild Krew and the mysterious force that governs them, and they learn a surprising secret about someone they know very well indeed.**

**Keep those reviews coming. (Negative or positive! It really doesn't matter which, just PLEASE review!) **


	14. Chapter 13

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(It's been a while since I updated this story, but I've recently been inspired to continue. Let me know what you think!)**

**Ch 13**

Ken groaned, his head was pounding and his arms and legs felt limp. A bright light was shining in his face, causing his eyes to burn. He blinked rapidly in a futile attempt to dispel the light.

"Is he awake?" A high-pitched voice, muffled by the pain coursing through his head, made Ken freeze. Then he shuddered with relief as a cold cloth fell upon his burning forehead.

"Not quite yet" A second voice, deeper in pitch, replied. The cloth moved around his face, the dampness within rushing to replace the burning aching feeling Ken had all over. "But he will be"

"Good" Ken was starting to feel drowsy again, but just before he fell asleep, he could have sworn he heard the first voice say "Begin the Procedure". There was a click, followed by a loud hum, and then everything went black

**Some time later...**

Some time later Ken stirred and opened his eyes. His headache was mostly gone, and he found himself staring at cold metal. Blinking rapidly to dispel the swirls at the edge of his vision, Ken raised his head and looked around. He was lying on the floor in the middle of what appeared to be some sort of garage.

Hearing a groan behind him, Ken glanced around and saw Jackie stirring on the floor next to him. She yawned and shook her head. For a few seconds, she blinked sleepily, looking confused, then her confusion was rapidly replaced by alarm and she whipped her head around. Spotting her brother lying next to her, she gasped. "Where are we?"

"I have no idea" Ken replied, rubbing his head as he glanced around the room again. As he did, the hair on the back of his neck pricked up. He had the feeling someone was watching them.

"No clue" Ken admitted, rubbing the back of his head. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, but my head feels like it's gonna explode." Jackie moaned, holding her forehead in her hands.

"Me too" Ken agreed, rubbing his head briskly with a hand, but then paused as Jackie suddenly gasped. Looking around he saw her staring at her hands, her mouth open and her eyes wide, her face a mask of shock and amazement. "What's wrong?" Ken asked. Jackie didn't answer, but turned, her eyes still wide and her mouth still open, to look at him. Then she, wordlessly, held up one of her hands. Ken felt his eyes widen. In the center of Jackie's palm was some sort of mark, a big pink circle. Each of Jackie's fingers, where her fingerprints ought to be, had also been marked pink, like she had just taken her fingerprints with pink ink.

"What's happened to me?" Jackie demanded, staring at her hands. Ken reached up to scratch his head, but paused when he noticed the same markings on his hands, only they were a deep red.

"I have no id..." Ken gasped as before his eyes the markings seemed to vanish. His hands looked ordinary again. He glanced at Jackie's hands, they looked normal too.

"Okay, this is _too_ weird!" Jackie exclaimed, scrambling to her feet. "Let's get out of here!" Ken got to his feet and they started walking towards a large door set into one wall.

"_Wait_! _Don't leave!_" Ken and Jackie both froze as a voice spoke from somewhere in the room.

"Wh-who said that?" Jackie murmured, her eyes wide.

"_Me!__"_ The voice, high-pitched and whispering, answered them. But no matter where they looked, they saw no one.

"Who's me?" Ken asked, whirling around as he caught movement out of the corner of his eye, but it was just a shadow, _of a long thin leg__ on the floor next to him._

"Uh, Ken..." Jackie's voice, quivering with sudden fear, made him glance up, and he gulped. The big purple spider from before was hanging, upside down, from the ceiling of the room. Ken froze as the creature's head swiveled to look at them, its four large purple eyes glowing softly in the faint light coming from the ceiling lamp it was covering. It cocked its head from side to side, swiveling on its short neck, the long dark brown hair that erupted from the back of its head seemed follow it's face like a wave. _Wait, what?_ Ken blinked rapidly and squinted. The closer he looked, the less the creature looked like a spider. For one thing, real spiders had a large abdomen, and visible connection between that and the cephalothorax (the front body), but _this_ creature had a thin abdomen and no visible connection to the front of the body, unless you counted its human-like head as one. And second, spiders did not hand human-like hair sprouting out of the back of their heads!

But before Ken could contemplate any farther, the 'spider' suddenly swung away from the ceiling towards them. Ken flinched, and he heard Jackie whimper, until he realized that the creature was tethered to the roof by a single strand of golden silk the thickness of a pencil. _Golden silk?_ Ken thought to himself, now feeling really confused. The only spiders he knew of that spun golden silk was the Orb Weaver Spider, and they weren't purple! Ken's fear began to evaporate as the 'spider' began lowering itself on its silk 'rope'. Instead, confusion, and a little anger took its place.

"Okay!" Ken exclaimed, causing Jackie to visibly jump. "What's going on here?!" He took a step towards the 'spider', to raised its two front-most clawed legs.

"_Ken! What are you doing?!"_ Jackie squeaked as she watched her brother step up to the 'spider' until he was practically staring it in the face. The 'spider', hissed at him, extending sharp looking mandible-like jaws dripping with a clear substance. Its clawed legs were extended, like scythes poised to cut through him. Jackie screamed and jumped backwards, but to her horror, Ken just stood there and folded his arms.

"You're not a real spider!" Ken declared, frowning, "Who are you?"

The 'spider' froze as if it has been shocked. Then, to both sibling's surprise, it started to shake, and began emitting a _very_ human-sounding chuckle.

"_Si_" It hissed, crossing its legs and nodding to Ken. _"I am not a true spider. But that did not stop me from catching you earlier"_ The 'spider' giggled again.

Ken felt his frown deepen. "Who are you? What's all this about?" He demanded.

The 'spider' stopped laughing and visibly sighed. Then it reached up and tapped near one of its eyes. There was a tiny whir and suddenly the eyes and fangs folded away form the face, like some kind of high-tech visor, revealing the face of a pretty latino woman with brown eyes. "Hola" She chirped, smiling upside down at them. "My name is Aviva. I'm a member of the Wild Krew."

"The Wild Krew?" Ken repeated, but as he said that something clicked inside of him. Where had he heard that name before?

Aviva nodded before continuing. "The Wild Krew are a secret society of naturalists concerned about how humans are treating the environment. We have been given a duty to protect nature and all the forms of life that inhabit her."

"How, by scaring people to death?" Jackie exclaimed, anger replacing the shock on her face.

Aviva winced and looked apologetic. "Yeah, sorry about the 'kidnapping' earlier" Aviva twitched her spider front legs in emphasis as she spoke. "We may have gone a little overboard about how we approached you, but we have to be careful. Our enemies are very cunning, which means we have to be even more so"

"Why?" Ken asked, feeling intrigued now. "Who are you fighting against?"

Aviva smiled, then reached up and fiddled with something that the siblings could not see. Suddenly her spider body was haloed in purple light, there was a _whiirrrrrrr_ and Aviva's spider body retracted into a form-fitting black-and-dark-purple outfit that resembled a wet-suit. Leaping off the web strand and landing nimbly in front of the stunned siblings, she extended a hand to them. "Let me show you" She offered, her eyes dancing with myrth.

* * *

**So, what do you think so far? What do you think will happen next?**

**I confess, this story is kinda on the back-burner at the moment, but that doesn't mean I'll abandon it. I always finish what I start. **

**As usual, I welcome any form of feedback. (Seriously, ANY feedback at all would be appreciated!)**


	15. Chapter 14

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(You have proclaimed you are tired of waiting for another chapter, so I won't keep you waiting any longer!)**

**Ch 14**

Ken and Jackie followed Aviva out of the garage and along a narrow corridor.

"Mind your heads!" Aviva called behind her as she ducked under a padded pipe that jutted out from the wall. Unfortunately, Ken heard the warning too late and ran headfirst into the pipe.

"You know, you still haven't answered my question" Ken exclaimed, rubbing his forehead and trying to block out Jackie's laughing.

"And what question would that be?" Aviva asked, smiling herself.

"What's all this about?" Ken repeated.

"You'll see" Aviva explained as they turned a a corner and found themselves in a short, curved hallway lined with closed doors. As Aviva lead them down the hallway, Ken's ears suddenly became aware of a low humming sound that grew louder as they passed one of the doors. Suddenly the whole hallway seemed to shudder and the siblings heard what sounded like a groaning and creaking that reminded Jackie of a plane being buffeted around by the wind.

"Aviva, we're not in the swamp anymore, are we?" She asked uncertainly. Aviva didn't answer, but her eyes sparkled with amusement as they approached a door at the far end of the hallway. Motioning for the siblings to wait, Aviva pulled off the glove she was wearing and placed her hand upon a sensor pad next to the door. The pad glowed green and the doors slid open with a hiss.

"Vamonos" She called back as she strode through the doors. Ken and Jackie glanced at each other, then shrugged and followed her through.

"Woah!" Jackie exclaimed, Ken didn't say anything, he just glanced around in awe. They had entered a chamber that was twice the size of the garage that they had woken up in. Most of the walls were covered with computer monitors and counters and chairs ringed the room. In the center was a massive circular platform. It looked like some sort of meeting room. As Ken and Jackie's eyes scanned the room, both siblings froze as they realized the room was not empty. Four figures were standing near one of the monitors, staring back at them, at least, Ken thought they were. The oblong helmets they were wearing covered their eyes, but Ken was sure that they were staring at him. They wore the same kind of suit that Aviva was wearing, except theirs had different color highlights, green, blue, yellow, and orange.

"Ken and Jackie Kailix, I would like you to meet my teammates." Aviva motioned to the others, who were walking around the table towards them.

"Um...hi" Jackie chirped, timidly waving a hand.

"Yeah, nice to meet you" Ken's voice betrayed the extreme nervousness he was feeling.

"Nice to meet you as well" The green humanoid closest to Ken replied, clasping his hand in a surprisingly firm handshake. Ken frowned, its voice seemed familiar.

"Yeah, it's not every day we get to meet..." The blue humanoid extended a hand to Jackie, who jumped backwards with a squeal. "What's wrong?"

"I think the helmets are scaring her, guys" Aviva noted, and Jackie nodded her head.

"Oh, right" The blue humanoid paused, then tapped the side of his helmet, causing the visor to retract, revealing a handsome face with blonde hair and blue eyes. "Sorry about that"

Jackie gasped, her eyes widening as she instantly recognized the face. "M-Martin Kratt?" She stammered, her face going red.

"Yep" Martin's smile widened as he nodded. "It's nice to meet you, Jackie"

"H-he knows my name" Jackie whimpered, shooting a glance at Ken that was half amazement and half fear.

"Then..." Ken frowned, scanning the remaining humanoids, his gaze pausing on the green one. He smiled and pointed. "You must be Chris Kratt. I know that green is his favorite color"

The humanoid paused, then reached up and tapped the side of its helmet, which retracted, revealing ruffled brown hair and smiling brown eyes. "Looks like you got me" Chris smiled at them. Jackie's legs gave way beneath her and she sat down heavily. Ken couldn't blame her. He felt like faintng himself.

"Are you okay?" Chris's smile faded and he looked concerned.

"Yeah, we're fine" Ken replied, his body still feeling numb. "Just a little...shaken up, over all that's happened to us lately. At those words, the others exchanged glances. Aviva, Chris and Martin all had the same guilty expression on their faces.

"Yeah, sorry about that" Martin finally spoke up. "I think we might have gone a little overboard there"

"A _little?"_ Jackie exclaimed, rising to her feet. "I seriously thought we were going to be spider supper!" She shot a dark look at Aviva as she spoke.

"Technically, it was the brother's idea!" Aviva shot a dark look at the Kratt Brothers

"No! It was_ his_ idea!" Chris and Martin exclaimed as they both pointed fingers at each other.

"I think we're _all _ to blame here" The orange humanoid tapped her helmet, which retracted revealing the face of an African-American girl with curly black hair.

"Koki's right" The yellow humanoid agreed, as his helmet retracted. His freckled face was lined with a frown and he ran a hand through his red hair. "We were all eager to practice our techniques."

"Hey! I know you!" Ken gasped suddenly. "You're Jimmy Z, the game designer from JZ games!"

"OMG! You're right!" Jackie's jaw dropped. "Your games are awesome! Bat Attack, Platypus Patrol, Hoppin with the Roos, every game that JZ makes is so inspirational and invigorating!"

"And they're very educational" Ken added. "I learned a lot about the environment through them. Probably more than my schoolbooks have taught me"

"Wow, that's great!" Jimmy's eyes lit up. "Glad to see my games have been so influential on your education" He smiled proudly. Next to him, Koki rolled her eyes.

"I especially like how realistic the games are, it puts you right in the middle of the action." Jackie explained, her eyes shining now. "It's like you _are_ the animal"

"And after what I've just seen, I now realize where your inspiration comes from" Ken commented, causing Jimmy to blush slightly.

"Okay, you got me there" His smile faded from proud to goofy.

"However, that still doesn't answer the big question here"

"And what is this 'big question'?" Aviva asked, settling down on the platform in the center of the room.

"Why are you doing all this? And for that matter, _how_ are you able to do this?"

There was silence following Ken's question as the five adults gazed at each other, as if mentally contemplating with each other how much they wanted to tell.

"Those are very good questions, Ken" Chris began. "Direct and to the point."

"And the only way to answer these questions is with a story" Martin added. "You two sure you wanna hear it?"

"I do! I do!" Jackie piped up, sticking her hand into the air.

"Me too! This should be interesting" Ken agreed. Aviva snapped her fingers and Ken and Jackie were suddenly knocked off their feet, falling into padded chairs that appeared out of nowhere. The chairs move on their own accord, rolling and spinning to face a large screen that seemed to take up one half of the circular wall of the room.

"Ken and Jackie Kalix, prepare yourselves" Martin announced in a low voice. "What you are about to hear is a secret that few children, and fewer adults are told. This secret must be protected, and can never be repeated to anyone who has not been initiated."

"Initiated into what?" Ken asked. Martin smiled and nodded at Koki, who gave a thumbs up and pressed a few keys on one of the keyboards under the screen. The Creature Corps logo, a black-and-white lemur appeared on the screen. The lemur was hanging from a pair of C's that were reversed so that they were facing each other.

"As you know, the two of you were accepted into the Creature Corps, an organization dedicated to helping improve the lives of animals around the world." Chris began.

"Yeah, the Creature Corps has been extremely motivational in spreading the message of conservation. You guys have offices in 50 different countries and are involved in environmental projects all over the world. I was just reading about your mission to help lemurs in Madagascar" Ken recalled.

"And I've been thinking of starting a project to help raise awareness about poaching of elephants and rhinos." Jackie added.

"Glad to see you're getting so involved" Martin smiled at them, then narrowed his eyes playfully. "And you're right that the corps mission is to help animals live freely and happily...but that's not the corps _only_ purpose"

"It's not?" Jackie felt her happy grin begin to slip away. Ken looked confused.

"Nope" Koki shook her head. "The main reason we founded to Creature Corps was to act as a cover"

"A cover? For what?" Ken asked, even though he was starting to think he didn't want to know the answer. The adult's faces were looking a lot less friendly than they had been a few seconds ago.

"For this" Aviva replied, pressing a few keys. As they watched, the screen zoomed in on the logo, centering on the two C's that were clutched in the lemurs's hands. The C's were positioned so they formed a circle, and inside the circle, Ken and Jackie could see faint impressions. Aviva clicked a few more keys and the screen shifted for a second and refocused. Inside the circle were four smaller circles, three of the same size and one that was bigger. The circles were arranged in the outline of a paw print. Aviva turned back to them and pointed to the black-and-purple suit she was wearing. In the center of the chest was a purple paw print that looked exactly like what was on the screen. Glancing around, they noticed that all the adults had one, Chris's was green, Martin's was blue, Koki's was orange, and Jimmy's was yellow. Ken also noticed that the paw prints seemed to be emitting a dim glow.

"Remember this symbol you two, you're going to be seeing it a lot" Jimmy warned them, no longer smiling.

"Okay, but what is it?" Jackie cocked her head and stared at the image on the screen.

"It's the true purpose of our mission" Martin replied dramatically. "It symbolizes what may be the very reason we all got involved in conservation in the first place"

"This symbol brought all of us together" Aviva continued, "It made us all friends"

"It gave us power, a power we've been using to help our planet in her most desperate hour" Koki shook her head, her hands on her hips.

"Totally" Jimmy added, gazing at the screen all starry eyes. "It's so beautiful it makes me want to..." Jimmy's voice broke off and he sniffed happily.

"Okay! It's important, we get it!" Jackie exclaimed. "But what _is_ it?"

"Well, it's not the symbol itself that's important. It's who the mark belongs to that is" Chris corrected Jackie.

"So spill!" Ken had practically leapt up from his chair in anticipation. "Who does this symbol belong to?"

"It belongs...to a race of aliens" Chris answered simply.

* * *

**Aliens?! What do aliens have to do with conservation? Thumbs up if this was what you were thinking after reading this chapter! You think you can answer this question? Please try to! I love reading people's theories. **

**In the next chapter, Ken and Jackie learn the Krew's history and make another discovery!**

**As always, please review to let me know what you want to see happen, and questions you have, or simply just to let me know how I'm doing!**

**Until next time!**


	16. Chapter 15

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(A little later than I planned, but here is the next chapter! Hope you like!)**

**Ch 15**

For a few seconds, Ken and Jackie just stood there, stunned. "A-Aliens?" Jackie finally gasped aloud.

Chris and Martin Kratt nodded simultaneously.

"B-but what do aliens have to do with conservation?" Ken stammered.

"More than you'd think" Jimmy Z smiled mysteriously. "You have to remember that aliens are creatures too, just like any animal here on Earth"

"And you also need to remember that all aliens have a planet that is their home just like we have the Earth" Aviva added

Ken felt his face scrunch to resemble the confusion growing in his head. "Wait, so you're saying that interstellar beings are coming to _us_ for conservation pointers?" He asked.

Jackie raised an eyebrow, her face a mixture of disgust and confusion. "But we humans can barely take care of _our own_ world! Should we _really_ be giving environmental advice to ?"

The members of the Krew glanced at each other, then they all burst out laughing.

"It's not like that" Aviva explained, her eyes watering as she giggled.

"Well, that's the impression we're getting" Ken affirmed and Jackie nodded curtly. Neither sibling was smiling.

"Maybe we should start at the beginning" Koki reasoned, and everyone else nodded. Aviva turned back to the screen and typed in a command. A picture came up showing a blown up photo of what looked like the underside of a large sea turtle, but it was surrounded by clouds, and the outline of tree branches ringed the edge of the picture. Ken and Jackie exchanged glances, both looking confused.

"What is that?"

"That?" Chris glanced from the kids to the photograph and back again. "That is what started all of this"

"It happened a few years ago. Chris and I were walking through the woods one evening near our home. We were looking for a certain species of bird that had been reported in the area, instead we found _that"_ Martin gestured to the photograph. "It just appeared out of nowhere, moving so quietly we didn't hear it until it was right on top of us!"

"We had no idea what was going on, so we decided to follow it. At first we thought it was some kind of bizarre new creature!" Chris took over, his eyes shining.

"You mean _you_ thought it was some new creature, and you practically dragged me behind you in your eagerness to chase it!" Martin teased, causing everyone but Chris to laugh. Even Ken and Jackie looked amused

Chris snorted, but smiled. "Well anyway, the flying turtle was moving pretty slowly so it was easy to follow. But after we had gone a few miles, we saw it lose altitude and finally crash land in a meadow in the middle of the woods. Once we got a closer look at it, we realized that it was a turtle-shaped ship. We watched it from under cover, waiting for someone to emerge, but no one did."

"After a while, we decided to investigate and we found out why no one came out of the ship, because there was no one inside it" Martin added, deliberately drawing suspense with spooky tones. "The entire ship was deserted."

"But how did you find out it was an alien ship?" Ken asked.

"We didn't at first" Chris admitted "We searched all night through the whole ship, but never found a single crew member. But we did find lots of lots of equipment that we couldn't understand."

"So, seeing as how we weren't engineers, we decided to go find someone who was, and show it to them." Martin placed a hand on Koki's shoulder, earning him a strange look in return. "We'd worked with Koki before, so we knew could trust her with a discovery like this"

"Though it wasn't easy getting her to come out here" Chris added, chuckling.

"No kidding" Koki smiled. "When you showed up my door at 6 in the morning, I had no idea what was going on. The last thing I wanted was to go off on some crazy animal adventure!" Everyone laughed at this. "But eventually, I became intrigued and came out to see what they were talking about, and boy I was glad I listened to them this time!"

"I remember when you called me about your discovery" Aviva piped up. "I was helping Jimmy Z with his game programming at the time, but I was happy to drop what I was doing when you described what the bros had found"

"It sounded so interesting that even_ I_ had to take a look" Jimmy spoke up next, "And we all know that I was not the most comfortable in the great outdoors at the time" With that, he leaned back in his chair, folding his hands under his head. Seeing their looks he sheepishly added. "I am _now_, though"

"Anyway, once we had all gathered at the crash site, we discovered that the ship was only mildly damaged, and Koki figured the ship must have been on automatic pilot, which would explain the lack of crew members." Chris continued. "So while she, Jimmy, and Aviva worked on getting the computers back online, Chris and I decided to look over the ship again in the daylight"

"Excuse me, but that still doesn't explain what _aliens_ have to do with all this!" Ken interrupted.

"We're getting to that!" Both Kratt brothers responded at the same time, causing the others to giggle as they glanced at each other.

"You wanna tell them?" Martin asked.

"No, go ahead" Chris replied, shaking his head.

Martin nodded, then moved forward until he was sitting cross-legged in front of Ken and Jackie. His eyes sparked with excitement. "While Chris and I were searching the ship the night before, we discovered a room we hadn't noticed before off the main chamber. A kind of chamber about in the middle of the ship that was barren of any equipment. As soon as all five of us stepped inside the chamber that morning, the door sealed behind us and strange creatures appeared around us"

"Creatures? W-what kind of creatures?" Jackie stammered.

"Creatures that we'd never seen before" Chris replied with a smile. "It turns out that chamber we had stumbled across was a communications center. At least, that's what the creatures told us."

"They said that they were Zobooans, a collection of intelligent races from the planet Zoboomafoo." Aviva spoke up. "Each member of the group was a different species with unique and amazing talents and powers, but they were all intelligent and despite a large number of differences in behavior and habitats, they all seemed to function well together, almost like they were all one species."

Ken and Jackie exchanged a look. "Hard to imagine so many species coming together without there being conflicts" Ken finally spoke up.

"Well, they said that there were conflicts a long time ago, but after an intense wave of natural disasters nearly wiped out almost all life on Zoboomafoo, the remaining species were forced to band together in order to survive. And from shared experiences occurred during that time, bonds of trust were developed. The species that survived the disasters worked together to rebuild their world and to improve it" Martin explained. "They developed technology that we humans are decades away from even considering, like this ship for example." He gestured around him.

"W-wait!" Jackie's eyes widened. "You mean we're sitting in an alien turtle ship right now?"

"Yep" Koki smiled at the look on Jackie's face before moving to a station and typing a few commands. A satellite map of the area appeared on the screen. Ken could see the marshland where they had been, and a large blue dot moving away from the marshland. "Current altitude, 5,000 ft and climbing. Current air speed, 80 knotts, holding steady" She read off a few figures as Jimmy turned to the kids.

"This ship is a prototype research ship that the Zobooans developed. Its purpose was to provide a place for the Zobooans to research life on other planets and serve as a laboratory for creating and repairing their technology." He explained.

"Technology?" Ken raised an eyebrow. "What kind of technology?"

Jimmy smiled and glanced at the others. Aviva nodded and moved to one of the workstations opposite the one Koki was sitting at. She pressed a button and a compartment popped open, extending a tray containing two devices that looked similar to smartphones. One had grey around the edges and the other had cream around the edges. Each had a clear screen and four buttons shaped like a paw print.

"Like these" Aviva explained, rolling forward with the devices in hand. She handed Ken the grey one and Jackie the cream one. "These are creature pods. Kinda like mobile phones, but with a _lot_ of upgrades." Aviva smiled proudly as she said this. "For example it can scan an animal or a plant in order to acquire necessary data safely, it can record images and sounds, and compare them against our creature database, it can project holographic images of things it records..."

"And it even serves as a nifty fishing pole!" Martin cut in, causing Jackie to giggle and Aviva to shoot him an annoyed look.

"Impressive" Ken commented, rolling his thumb over the touch sensitive screen and watching as various icons appear. Then he frowned and glanced up at them. "but I'd still like to know how Jackie and I fit into all this. I mean...I assume there's a reason you're telling us this, right?" He added, seeing the looks on everyone's faces.

"Yes, there is" Koki finally answered after a few moments silence, spinning back around and typing a key. The paw print symbol appeared on the screen again. "Like we said earlier, the Creature Corps serves as a cover, a cover for the Wild Krew"

"The Wild Krew?" Jackie repeated. "What's the Wild Krew?"

"We are!" Martin exclaimed, spreading out his arms to indicate his surroundings. "You are currently standing in the Tortuga, the travelling headquarters for the Wild Krew!"

"Our mission is simple, to help keep animals and plants living free and in the wild." Chris explained. "To do this, we use the Zobooan technology that we found aboard this ship to help ensure that different animal and plant species survive to see the future."

"The creature pods are a big asset to our mission" Aviva held up a purple-edged creature pod. "In addition to what we mentioned, they also allow us to communicate with our agents around the world. Whenever an agent detects an unusual animal or habitat problem, they use their creature pods to contact us and inform us of the situation."

Ken glanced down at the device in his hands and his brain suddenly clicked. He felt a surge of excitement as the realized what was about to happen. "So...you're saying that..." He stammered

Aviva nodded before tapping on the keyboard. A holographic image of the world appeared in the center of the room. A number of greenish-blue dots popped up on almost every continent, from the Arctic, to Africa, to Australia, even from two in Antarctica. "Since the Wild Krew only has five members, it's virtually impossible for us to cover every creature problem that comes to light without spreading ourselves thin. That's where the Kritters come in" Aviva gestured to the map. "Every dot you see is a Kritter, basically a kid just like the two of you, who has been given a creature pod and a mission to fulfill. The Kritters serve as the eyes and ears of both the Creature Corps and the Wild Krew. Their mission is to seek out unusual animal or habitat problems in their local areas, deal with them as best they can, and notify us if backup is needed."

"They also help us keep an eye on certain people who...shall we say, like to give creatures trouble" Koki added, no longer smiling.

"And you want the two of us to become 'Kritters'?" Ken theorized, his heart pounding. Jackie's eyes widened and she gasped.

The Krew members nodded. "We've been watching the two of you for some time, even before you submitted your applications to join the Creature Corps. You were actually first recommended to us a year ago by our agent in this area." Aviva explained. "We've been following your progress and were impressed with what we saw.

"She's right" Chris agreed, looking Ken in the eyes. "Ken, your knowledge of the animal kingdom and the diversity within it rivals that of most adults. You are calm under pressure, have a keen eye, and are able to think quickly when faced with a problem. You always seem to come up with an answer that satisfies everyone." As Chris spoke, a series of images appeared on the screen, showing Ken giving a report in front of a large crowd, drawing a detailed diagram of a house, and finally solving an argument between two teams on a sports field. Ken glanced down at the floor, feeling slightly awkward under the praise he was being showered with.

"And Jackie" Martin stepped forward, smiling widely at Ken's sister. "You truly love the environment and all that lives in it. Your athleticism and enthusiasm are matched only by your sense of honor and unyielding determination. You go to great lengths to take care of those who need it" As Martin spoke, a series of images on the screen showed Jackie caring for a bird with an injured wing, leading other girls on a run through the forest, and finally standing between a large old tree and a pair of ax-carrying men in plaid shirts with a stubborn frown on her face. Jackie was able to hold Martin's gaze, but Ken saw her cheeks distinctively redden.

"The truth is" Jimmy piped up. "The animals of the world need people like you on their side, if they are going to have the best chances of surviving in a world where much of humanity almost always seems to be moving against them."

"If you accept our offer you will become fighters in the struggle to help maintain the balance of nature." Koki added. "But be warned, not everyone will thank you for it."

"Just as the Wild Krew works in secrecy, so to do the Kritters. To the rest of the world, you are volunteers in the Creature Corps, and nothing more. Once you become a Kritter, you cannot tell anyone else about the Kritters, or the Krew and its mission" Aviva warned.

"Ken and Jackie, the mission we're offering you will be very challenging, very demanding, and may at times be very dangerous. You can back out if you'd like, but we are really hoping you will accept this offer. Will you join the child agents who help us in our fight to keep creatures alive? Will you join the Kritters?" Martin asked, rather dramatically. There was silence as the Krew waited for their answer. Ken and Jackie glanced at each other. Jackie was smiling and Ken felt a smile on his face too. It was really a no-brainer. They turned to face the Krew and answered at the same time.

"Yes!"

* * *

**I apologize for making you all wait for this chapter. Complexities in my scheduling made it so I couldn't get this out sooner. Please forgive the delay and I hope nothing exploded!**

**So Ken and Jackie have now become kid agents working with the Wild Krew. I modeled the Kritters after the Wild Kratt kids. Those kids have helped the Wild Kratts a number of times, especially when they alert the team to the movements of Zack Varmitech and other baddies. They also have their own creature pods and know all about the power suits and the rest of the Kratt's gear. **

**Anyone have an idea what the Zobooans may look like? I shouldn't have to give you a hint (even though I did)! **

**In the next chapter, the siblings return home and begin their first mission. Meanwhile, Amy comes across a challenge of her own. **

**As always, I appreciate any comments you can give me. Let me know what you think! **


	17. Chapter 16

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(Complex English: Once again the call of the crowd commands and compels me to create a chapter for your convenience and commiseration**

**Plain English: Here we go again! )**

**Ch 16**

KWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Ken awoke with a start as a kookaburra laugh echoed through his room. Reaching over, he switched off his alarm and rubbed his eyes. When his vision cleared, he saw the alarm read 5:30. Sitting up sleepily, he glanced around his bedroom, wondering why he had set his alarm so early. His eyes fell on his desk, where an unfamiliar device sat next to his lamp, just visible from the bed. A gray colored device that looked similar to a smartphone, with some buttons in the shape of a paw print.

Upon seeing it, Ken's memory seemed to click and a jolt of energy lanced through him. As he grabbed his clothes for the day, Martin Kratt's voice echoed in his mind. "_We'll be calling you around 6:00 tomorrow morning to explain your first mission. Make sure that the both of you are awake when we do."_

"I still can't believe I actually got to meet the Kratt brothers" Ken muttered under his breath as he stepped into the shower. "And the fact that they would trust us with something like this!" Ken felt almost giddy as she rinsed under the shower head. Deep down, he felt a little nervous about what their first mission would entail, but he also felt excited. He had always wanted to help the environment and he was being given a change to help in a way that few others could match!

As Ken stepped out of the shower, a faint whipporwhil call seeped under the bathroom door. When he opened the door, Jackie was standing there in her nightgown, her hair was a little frizzy and she gave a small yawn as Ken passed her, but her eyes were sparkling with excitement. "Be ready in five" She promised, before closing the door.

Smiling to herself, Ken made to go back to his room, but as he reached for the doorknob, he heard another door open down the hall and turned to find his father leaning out of the master bedroom doorway, staring at him with a look of tired confusion on his face.

"Wh-wh-what are you two doing up so early?" He stammered through a giant yawn.

Ken laughed. "You know what they say dad. The early bird catches the worm" Smiling at the confused look on his father's face, Ken ducked inside his room and closed the door. He changed out of his pajamas and into jeans and a dirt-brown T shirt with a large black crocodile head on the front. Checking to make sure his homework was in his backpack, he grabbed the creature pod, plopped down on his bed and glanced at his clock. It read 5:55. "Hurry, Jackie" He mumbled, leaning back on his bed.

Exactly four minutes later, Jackie burst into the room, dressed from head to toe in a dark brown skirt and vest over a black T shirt and leggings. Her brown hair had been pulled back into a ponytail. She paused, glancing up and down the hall, then closed the door and locked it. "Did they call yet?" She asked, lowering her voice as she joined her brother on the bed.

"Not yet" Ken answered, but just then...

Tweeetweeetweeetweee! The device in Ken's hand started tweeting and vibrating. The kids looked at each other, excitement clear on both of their faces. With suddenly shaking fingers, Ken pressed to center button on the paw pad. The tweeting stopped, then a small panel opened and a beam of greenish light erupted from the screen, flickered for a few seconds, before solidifying into a pair of familiar figures.

"_Hey you guys!"_ The tiny holographic image of Martin Kratt smiled up at them. Next to him, Chris Kratt nodded and beamed

Ken and Jackie glanced at each other, wide eyed, then back at the holograms. "H-hello" Ken finally stammered.

"Wow, this is so cool!" Jackie squealed, running her hand through the holographic image, disrupting the picture briefly.

Chris's smile widened as he faded back into focus, and he nodded. "It's wild, isn't it?" He asked

"This is like...the ultimate cell phone. I'm a little surprised you haven't tried to patent this baby!" Jackie admitted

"_See? I'm not the only one who thinks that!"_ An unseen voice that sounded like Jimmy Z made the Kratt brothers briefly glance away, making Jackie giggle.

"_We've had this conversation already JZ!"_ Aviva argued off screen.

"So, what's this mission you have for us?" Ken asked, trying to bring everyone back to topic. Jackie immediately sobered up.

The brothers looked back up. "_Oh, right. You remember the swampland where you first encountered us, right?"_

"Yeah" Ken frowned, confused.

"_Well, we've heard that some developers are interested in a particular section of the swamp, and it's probably not for a good reason"_ Chris explained. "_We need the two of you to find out more about what they're planning to do"_

Ken felt an excited chill rush down his spine. "We'll be glad to help in any way we can." He promised. Jackie nodded eagerly next to him.

Martin smiled. "_Great. We've sent another Kritter to meet you at your school. They'll fill you in on the details when you get there. You're to meet them on your school playground"_

"How will we know them?" Jackie asked.

Martin and Chris glanced at each other and back at them, their faces wearing mirror-image smiles. "_Actually, it's someone you know quite well. Look for a person wearing a yellow sweatshirt"_ And with that, the hologram faded.

Ken and Jackie glanced at each other, but before they could speak, they heard a tapping on the door and their father spoke through the wood.

"Are you two coming down to breakfast? Or do I have to eat all these blueberry pancakes myself?" Suddenly realizing how hungry they were, the siblings tripped over each other to get downstairs and eat.

* * *

"A yellow sweatshirt" Jackie repeated to herself as she scanned the crowded playground outside the school. There were several people wearing yellow, two girls were wearing yellow hoodies, and one boy was wearing a yellow sweatshirt. But none of them were people she knew very well. "Who are we supposed to be meeting? And where?" Glancing up, she locked eyes with Ken, who was standing on the other side of the playground. He shook his head. Clearly he was having no better luck than she was. Suddenly, his eyes widened and his jaw dropped.

"Hi Jackie!" Jackie yelped as Amy's voice rang out from behind her. "What are you doing?"

"Besides getting a heart attack?" Jackie exclaimed, placing a hand over her heart. "I'm looking for someone"

"Really? Who?" Amy glanced back up at her brother and saw that he had not moved an inch and was now staring at them with a smile on his face. _What's he so happy about?_ Jackie wondered. "Jackie, who are you looking for? Amy asked again.

"I'm looking for someone wearing a yellow sweatshirt." Jackie snapped, scanning the playground again. "Do you see anyone like that?"

"A yellow sweatshirt, huh?" Amy repeated. "Hmmmm, let me think" There was a sudden teasing element present in Amy's voice. "I remember seeing a girl wearing a yellow sweatshirt this morning. Now who was it? Hmmmm. Don't rush me, I can figure this out."

"Amy, what are you...?" Confused by her friend's rambling, Jackie looked around behind her, and froze as her eyes filled with yellow. Amy was leaning against the wall behind her, wearing black leggings, white boots, _and an over-sized yellow sweatshirt!_

Jackie's jaw dropped, making Amy's smile widen. "Gotcha" She winked, then burst out laughing.

"Amy...you...you're...?" Jackie stammered. Amy didn't say anything, instead she reached into a pocket of her sweatshirt and pulled out a familiar looking device. _A Creature Pod!_

"So _you're_ the Kritter we're supposed to meet" Jackie jumped at Ken's voice. She hadn't noticed that he had appeared alongside her.

Amy nodded, then her smile suddenly seemed to fade and she looked serious. "But we can't talk here, come on" Glancing around, she lead the siblings around the school building towards the greenhouses where they had found Desmona smoking. Amy stopped at one of the doors and knocked five times. A few moments later, the door unlocked and swung open, revealing Allison Baldwin standing there in brown overalls.

"Hey you two" Allison smiled, seeing Ken and Jackie.

"Hey Allison, what are you doing here?" Ken asked.

Allison smiled and stood aside, motioning for them to enter the structure. Once they did, Allison bolted the door and turned to face them. As she did, she pulled a creature pod from her pocket. Jackie's jaw dropped. "_You're_ a Kritter too?" She gasped.

"I'm not _just_ a Kritter, I'm the _head_ Kritter" Allison corrected her. "I'm the one who organizes Kritter activity around the world"

"Wow" Ken exclaimed, impressed. Allison gave him a quick smile, then turned to look at Amy, who was gazing out the glass windows at the way they had come.

"Anyone there?" She asked. Amy looked back at them and shook her head. "Good" Allison nodded, then turning back to Ken and Jackie and motioned for them to take a seat.

"So, what's going on?" Ken asked once everyone had seated.

Allison didn't respond at first, instead she typed a few commands into her creature pod and spun the dark blue device around so that the screen was facing them. On the screen was a picture of a very smug-looking Ajay. "Do any of you know this boy?" She asked.

"Oh yeah, we know him alright" Jackie muttered darkly. "We know he's a real jerk"

"_That_ would be the biggest understatement of the year" Amy growled, narrowing her eyes so much they became nothing but slits.

"The Torstyn family is one of the primary investors in Varmitech. Ajay's father tried to develop the swampland we were in yesterday into a shopping mall, but our parents shot down their idea" Ken explained.

Allison nodded, looking grim. "I'm aware of that, but the Krew believes that Zach isn't done with the swampland yet. He was skulking around there yesterday while we were all off bird watching." The corners of her mouth curved upwards at this, and Ken and Jackie snorted in amusement. Amy rolled her eyes and frowned.

"So what do you think he wants?" Jackie asked.

"We don't know" Allison admitted. "What's what you to find out. Ken, we know Ajay tried to talk to you yesterday before we left."

Ken snorted. "Tried to _convert_ me might be a better way of putting it"

"Well, we need you to let him try again. Talk to him. Pretend that you're considering his ideas."

Ken nodded, then frowned. "That might be difficult. I practically shot his plans down the same way my parents shot down his parent's plans. It would look pretty weird if I suddenly became interested in what he had to say"

Allison nodded. "True, but we have faith in you, Ken. You'll come up with something" Allison smiled at him and Ken felt a surge of confidence. He felt like he _could_ do this. In his mind he started working on things he could say to Ajay.

"What about me?" Jackie asked.

"You and Amy will need to talk with Ajay's friends, find out if they know anything. Probably not, but we need a backup plan should Ken be unable to find out anything" Allison instructed.

"But why can't _we_ interrogate Ajay?" Jackie whined, but Amy suddenly groaned

"Ajay approached Ken directly, it would be best if Ken approaches him." Allison answered firmly. "Besides, talking with Ajay's friends requires talents that you two have an abundance of"

"What do you...?" Amy's eyes widened and she exclaimed in disbelief and shock.

"What? What is it?" Jackie asked, but before Amy could reply...

DING! DING! DING! Three shrill bells rang through the room and echoed down the surrounding hallway. "That's the class bell. We'd better get going"

"Good luck" Allison smiled and gave then a small salute, which the kids returned before dashing away. Allison turned back to a potted plant and picked up a trowel. "You'll need it" she muttered under her breath.

* * *

**And so the mission begins! What will happen? How will it happen? To find out, stay tuned!**

**Next chapter: Ken meets with Ajay and has a surprise encounter, meanwhile Jackie and Amy try to get information out of Ajay's friends, with surprising results!**

**Don't abandon me now everyone! This is when things really get fun!**


	18. Chapter 17

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(It's been a while since I updated this one, hasn't it? Maybe too long! Anyway, here's the next chapter!)**

**Ch 17**

"There he is" Amy muttered darkly, peering through the glass doors that lead into the school library. Jackie peeked over Amy's shoulder and saw a lone boy sitting at one of the tables, typing away into his laptop. "Stephen Alamos, a close friend of Ajay." Amy sighed. "And a certified nerd" She muttered to Jackie, who shrugged. Sure Stephen looked _kinda_ nerdish with those thick-framed glasses, but he didn't really look like a geek, not that she actually knew what a geek looked like.

"You really think he's gonna know anything about what Ajay's parents are gonna do to the swampland?" Jackie whispered.

"Remember, he was standing right behind Ajay when we heard Ajay try to convince Ken, remember? Ajay even used _his_ laptop to show us that data" Amy reminded her.

"Okay, but that doesn't mean he'll just tell us" Jackie cautioned. "People like him tend to stick together. How are we gonna find out what he knows?"

"Well, we're not gonna do it from out here." Amy sighed, before taking a breath and reaching for the doors.

"You go ahead, I'll catch up. I wanna give my brother a quick text" Jackie said, whipping out her phone and leaning against the wall. Amy nodded and strolled inside.

_Hey bro, we're about to move in, you had any luck so far?_

* * *

"I wish" Ken breathed, sneaking a glance at Amy's text before slipping the phone into his pocket and turning his attention back to what Ajay was saying.

"...So as you can see, we would, of course, be paying special attention to any and all concerns of local wildlife while we develop the swampland." Ajay finished explaining, looking rather smug.

"Yes I see, and how exactly would you deal with the birds?" Ken asked.

Ajay froze, his smug smile still on his face. "Birds?" He repeated.

"Birds" Ken nodded. "You _are_ aware that particular swampland is a resting place for a few species of migratory birds, one or two of them, quite rare, if my guidebook is correct. If you develop over the swampland, there is a chance that the buildings will frighten the birds away, they will seek other places to rest, that would take time out of their migratory patterns, which are usually very carefully constructed with no room for meandering. Bottom line, if the birds are firhgtened by the buildings they will not land, if they don't land they won't refuel and without fuel they won't be able to complete the journey their kind has undertaken for hundreds if not thousands of years. How would you deal with that problem?"

Ajay's expression did not change an inch, but Ken could almost see the gears turning in his head as he struggled to process what he had just heard. Ken fought the urge to smile as Ajay finally frowned.

"K-Ken, I thought you were agreeing with my parent's idea." He finally stammered

"I never said I was agreeing to anything. I simply agree to hear out your proposal" Ken corrected. "To give you a real chance to sell me your idea, and so far you are not doing very well" Ajay frowned and he opened his mouth to argue, but Ken cut him off. "For example, though I have asked you several times, and yes Ken, I have been counting, you still haven't told me _why_ your father is interested in developing _this_ area of swampland."

"I've asked my father that question myself, and he hasn't told me exactly what he's after yet, but that's hardly..."

"So he's after something?" Ken realized and Ajay made an I-should-not-have-said-that face. "Something like what?"

"I don't know" Ajay admitted, his voice tense.

Ken snorted. "Come on Ajay, if you're gonna convince me, to convince my parents, to convince their friends, to convince the city council _not_ to shoot down your parent's development plan, I'm gonna need a little more than '_I don't know_'"

"My father's reasons are his own" Ajay snapped, stepping forward until they were face to face.

"Oh that's convincing." Ken mocked, then his face turned serious as Ajay's turned red. "Let's be serious, Ajay. I've been in that swampland at least twenty times and I'm telling you, there is nothing on the surface that would interest a developer like your father."

"Of course not! You wouldn't order drilling equipment if it was lying on the..." Ajay suddenly froze and made another face. "I think we're done here" He packed up his laptop and headed for the door before Ken could say another word.

"So Ajay's dad is after something underneath the swamp, eh?" Ken smiled, as he pulled his phone out from his pocket and sent Jackie a text.

_Hey sis, I just 'learned' that Ajay's dad may be after something buried under the swamp. Maybe a mineral of some kind, or oil perhaps. Businesses have been known to destroy habitats looking for that kinda stuff. Hope that helps. _

* * *

Jackie smiled as she read her brother's text, then flipped her phone shut. She slowly made her way into the library, trying not to look at Amy, who was laughing at something Stephen had said. Instead of joining them, she made her way over to the back room, where the reference books tended to be.

When she got there, she started to scan the books, looking for minerals in the swamp, then froze as she heard a voice coming from the next aisle over.

"No. No. No. Argh! Where is it?" Jackie glanced around the edge of the row, and her heart skipped a beat. There was a boy standing in the next aisle, sifting through the reference books. His back was to her, but she recognized the pasty skin and flaming red hair of Leo Roberston, another close friend of Ajay.

As Leo continued hunting, oblivious to his observer, Jackie frowned thoughtfully. As a friend of Ajay, Leo may have information that would help Jackie find out what Ajay was up to, the question was, how could she get Leo to talk? She couldn't just ask him outright, Leo was pretty loyal to his friends and wouldn't just betray them.

A sudden buzz in her pocket made her dart back around the bookcase and pull out her phone. It was a text from Amy; _Where R U?_

Jackie paused before texting back. _By Reference Books, how'd it go with Stephen?_

Jackie smiled as she sent the text, which turned into a smothered giggle when Amy replied back; _Lousy, I tried to charm the info out of him and he buttoned up like a clam!_

Jackie smiled widely as she texted back. _I've got Leo Robertson in the reference section. You want me to try?_

There was a pause, then Amy texted. _Go for it!_ Jackie's smile faded slightly as she peaked around the bookcase at Leo, who was sill oblivious to her presence, bending low, his hand wandering along the spines of the books on the shelf in front of him. "So how exactly do I get the information out of him?" She muttered as she watched him search. As her mind whirred, she glanced down at her phone again. As she read the text, an idea popped into her mind and she smiled, then quickly frowned as she realized what she would have to do. But she could see no other way.

Sighing quietly, Jackie reached into her backpack and pulled out some eye liner, a powder puff, and a tube of lip gloss. Using her phone's dark screen as miniature mirror, she applied some powder and gloss to her face and lips, then straightened her hair, making sure it didn't fall past her ears and framed her face. Then, slipping the gloss, eyeliner, and compact back into her bag, she hoisted it over her shoulders peeked around the corner. Leo was still there, on his hands and knees, scanning the books on the very bottom shelf. Saying a silent prayer for strength, Jackie stepped around the corner, and raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Leo?" She asked, as if she was startled to see him down there.

The boy looked up, and smiled when he saw who it was. "Oh, hello Jackie". He said simply. Jackie felt herself start to relax. Leo may run with Ajay's crowd, but he wasn't like the rest of the geeks. He looked and acted...more normal.

"Whatcha doing down there?" Jackie swayed back and forth a little, trying to look 'cute', but Leo had reverted his gaze to the bottom shelf again and the look was wasted.

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm searching for a book" He replied without looking up.

Jackie, annoyed that she was being ignored, replied "It looks to me like you're searching for termites. Why don't you use the catalog to find a book?"

Leo stopped his search and gave Jackie a look that was part amusement and part annoyance. "I did" He replied, holding up a pair of white index cards. "The catalog says the books I want should be here, but I can't find one of them"

Jackie's look of confusion wasn't hard to fake. "You sure you got the number right?" She asked innocently.

"Yeah, I'm sure" Leo nodded.

"Can I help you look?" Jackie asked eagerly. Leo paused, then shrugged and scooted over, gesturing to one of the lower shelves. As Jackie got down on her knees, her hand reached over and snapped one of the cards from Leo's hand. Ignoring Leo's protest, she glanced at the title "_Paxton's guide to rare and unusual elements"_ She read aloud before glancing at Leo. "Elements? Like gold and minerals?"

"Exactly" Leo replied over his shoulder as he glanced further down the shelf.

"I didn't know you were into rocks, Leo" Jackie pointed out as she began scanning the shelf. "Aha! Here we are!" She pulled a book from the shelf and handed it to Leo.

"I'm not" Leo replied as he took the book and placed it on top of a small pile that was next to him, "It's professional research"

"_Your_ professional research?" Jackie probed, which made Leo glance at her, annoyed. "Sorry, none of my business" She backed off, thinking quickly. "Hey, maybe I can help you with your 'professional research'. I know a lot about minerals" She boasted.

Leo paused and looked at her. "And what exactly do you know about mineral deposits that these books can't tell me?" He asked with a smile.

Jackie smiled too, recognizing the challenge Leo was offering her.

"Oh, you'd be surprised what we girls know about minerals." She said, flashing him a smile and fluttering her eyelids a little. "For example, did you know that a true diamond doesn't reflect light like a glass one will, the light will pass into the heart of the jewel?"

"That's classic textbook information" Leo countered.

"Or, that gold is actually a really soft metal that flattens when you hit it with a hammer" Jackie tried again.

Leo snorted "Tell me something I _don't_ already know" He rolled his eyes.

"Well..." Jackie paused, racking her brains, trying to remember something she had once read online. "Do you know what the most toxic mineral is on Earth?"

Leo paused for a second "Of course, It's Orphiment, a rock made from sulfur and arsenic. Just holding it is enough to poison you" He answered, still not looking up.

Jackie smiled in victory. "Close, but Mercury Sulfide is actually the most toxic" Leo paused and finally glanced back at her, making her smile widen. "It's an ore that contains pure mercury. It was used widely by the ancient Chinese and Europeans. They called it 'dragon's blood', but today we call it...Cinnabar" She finished, then giggled as a look of disbelief crossed Leo's face.

"Are you _sure_?" Leo did not look convinced.

"Check it if you don't believe me" Jackie challenged, pointing to the book pile next to them.

Still looking unsure, Leo opened the top book, flipped to a certain page, scanned the text with his finger, then froze. When he looked up again, he was smiling in an embarrassed kind of way.

"So, can I help or not?" Jackie asked.

Leo sighed. "Fine" He handed Jackie the index card he had been carrying. Jackie changed at the title. _Intergalactic minerals and how to locate them_

"Intergalactic minerals?" Jackie read. "You're looking for rocks from outer space?"

"Technically, Ajay is the one looking, or at least, his father is, apparently." Leo replied, before narrowing his eyes at the bottom shelf. "Aha!" He suddenly cried out and pulled a small book from the shelf. "I knew it was here somewhere!" He crowed triumphantly, standing up with the book in hand.

"Nice job finding the book" Jackie congratulated, then her face fell. "I guess...you didn't need me after all" She pouted, making Bambi eyes at Leo.

Leo stared at Jackie for a second, then groaned and shook his head. "I can still use some help reading through all these books. Come on!" Jackie's pouty face vanished as she nodded eagerly, getting to her feet. But as she followed Leo through the shelves, her mind was whirring. What did Zach Varmitech want with rocks from Outer Space? And what did this have to do with the swampland?

* * *

**That's a good question! What's the connection between a swamp, space rocks, and Zach Varmitech? Anyone have an idea? I'm all ears! **

**I had originally planned to put this story on Hiatus, but I'm seeing an ending in the near future, so I'm going to try to go for the finish! With me luck!**

**Until next time! **


	19. Chapter 18

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(It's certainly been a while since this story was updated! But here you go!)**

**Ch 18**

"Rocks from outer space_?"_ Chris Kratt repeated, as his image flickered in and out on Ken's creature pod.

"That's what Jackie said" Ken confirmed what his sister had texted him earlier. "She thinks that there might be a mineral of extraterrestrial origin buried somewhere in the swampland, and that _that's_ what Zach is after."

Chris looked thoughtful for a moment. "Well, it would depend on what _kind_ of mineral we're talking about, but that's certainly a possibility"

"So we did good?" Ken asked hopefully.

Chris smiled up at him. "You two did _very_ good for your first assignment. I'll talk to the rest of the Krew and see where this lead takes us. Thanks a lot!" Chris signed out before Ken could say anything else. His hologram flickered out of existence and the creature pod screen went blank. Ken sighed and placed the creature pod on his bedside table. Rolling onto his back he stared up at the giant bear poster that covered the sloping ceiling of his bedroom.

"I hope we _can_ find out what Zach is after." He mused to himself. "I'd sure hate to see anything happen to that swampland" He frowned as he felt something click in the back of his mind. He felt there was some kind of connection between the swampland, space rocks, and the Krew. He knew it was there, but he couldn't see what it was. The feeling was kind of like having an itch on your back that you cannot reach no matter how hard you try, the more Ken thought about it, the more frustrated he became until he finally groaned in annoyance and threw his face into his pillow.

He herd a tapping on his door, followed by the squeak of hinges. "Ken? How'd they take the news?" He heard Jackie ask. Ken groaned in response, his voice muffled by the pillow. "Oh, that bad, huh?"

Ken turned over to throw his sister a dark look, but there was no trace of sarcasm on her face. Instead, she looked genuinely worried. "It's not that. Chris said we did a really good job." He admitted, which caused Jackie to brighten. "It's just...I feel like there's an obvious connection between the swampland and extraterrestrial rocks that none of us are seeing."

"Like...what?" Jackie pondered, cocking her head to one side.

"I don't know!" Ken exclaimed, pounding his bed in frustration. "It's driving me crazy!" For a moment, both siblings just stared at each other, thinking. Then Jackie sighed, flipping her hair out of her eyes.

"No one is expecting you to get this right away, bro" She soothed. "I also feel like there's something that we're not seeing, but you don't see _me_ making a big fuss over everything, do you?"

Ken smiled sheepishly at his sister. "No" He finally admitted, before sighing. "So what now?"

Jackie was about to answer, when there was a knock on the door. They glanced up, shoving the creature pod out of sight as their father stuck his head through the doorway. "Ah, I thought I might find you two in here. Get your coats, we're eating out tonight!"

"Sweet Dad" Ken perked up. "Where are we going?"

"Animal Junction" His father replied, which made both children freeze and glance at each other. Seeing their look, their father chuckled. "Don't worry, there won't be any 'wild animal' attacks this time, I promise. We're leaving in five" With that, he darted back out the doorway and strode off, whistling, and they heard their parent's bedroom door close.

"Well, I guess we'd better get ready" Ken finally broke the silence.

* * *

"Wow, it looks exactly the same as last time" Jackie commented as they stepped out of the car.

"Yeah" Ken had to agree. Stepping through the doorway, they saw that the inside looked the same as well. "They really cleaned the place up, didn't they?" He whispered to Jackie, but his sister didn't reply. Ken turned to look at her, and saw that she was no longer standing beside him, but a few feet behind him now, her body frozen and her eyes wide. Ken turned to see where she was looking, and his breath caught in his throat. Zach Varmitech was standing near a table situated in a private alcove, along with AJ and a man Ken recognized as the boy's father. Even from this distance, Ken could see that all three of them were angry.

"Hey kids!" Ken and Jackie jumped as their father called to them from the other end of the entrance hall. "Are you coming or not?"

"What are _those_ people doing here?" Jackie whispered to Ken as they rejoined their parents.

"Beats me" Ken replied as he sat down. As he did, he glanced up at the entrance and frowned. "But I think that guy might have something to do with it." He motioned towards the doorway and Jackie spun in her chair to see Mr. Wasteland stride into the restaurant. After speaking with the hostess for a moment, he walked quickly to the table where Zach, AJ, and Mr, Torstyn were standing. After a few handshakes and exchanged words, the foursome sat down at the table.

"Oh I wish we knew what they were saying." Jackie grimaced

"What who is saying?" Their mother asked, causing Jackie to wince.

"Oh nothing" Jackie smiled at her mother, and then her eyes suddenly widened. "Uh mom, dad. I just remembered that I was supposed to call Amy about something important. I'll be right back, okay?"

Ken realized what Jackie meant and nodded while their parents glanced at each other. "Okay dear" They nodded. Jackie winked at Ken and darted towards the exit, while Ken glanced back towards the table.

"What are you looking at?" Ken's father twisted in his seat and his eyes narrowed as he saw AJ and his father. "What are _they_ doing here?" He growled, causing his wife to look up.

"I don't know" Ken's mother answered, her tone suddenly stern. "But let's leave them to their business, okay?" She warned. Ken's father sighed but nodded, turning back around as the waiter appeared.

* * *

As Jackie bolted out the front door of the restaurant, her hand darted inside her purse and pulled out her creature pod. As she ran around to the back of the restaurant, she tapped the screen, then scrolled through the numbers until she came to one and tapped it.

"Calling the Wild Krew! Calling the Wild Krew! This is JK! Please Come in!" She said in as clear a voice as she could, but inside she was a bundle of nerves

For a few moments there was no response, then the screen suddenly lit up and a beam of light rose form the screen and solidified into the image of Aviva.

"Go JK" Aviva said, smiling up at her.

Despite her nervousness, Jackie couldn't help but smile down at the little hologram. Clearing her throat, she reported; "I'm at the Animal Junction restaurant with my family. We just saw Mr. Wasteland, Zach Varmitech, Mr. Torstyn, and AJ sitting down together at a table."

Aviva's smile faded. "I see"

"Any ideas what they could be up to?" Jackie asked, feeling her unease start to return

"Maybe they're just there for the food?" Jimmy Z suddenly suggested, appearing in the hologram light.

"Somehow I doubt it" Aviva shook her head before glancing back up at Jackie. "Is there any way you can find out what they're saying?"

Jackie should her head "The table is set in a private alcove, and besides, AJ knows the both of us. If we try to get closer, he'll recognize us"

"Hmmmm" Aviva rubbed her chin thoughtfully.

"Oh, I know!" Koki suddenly appeared in the image, her face excited. "I just remembered that I rigged a flycam terminal in each of their creature pods. They can use that to spy on their meeting!"

Aviva brightened, "Oh yeah, that's a great idea!"

Jackie was confused. "A fly-what?" She asked

Koki glanced up at her. "Listen carefully Jackie. Underneath the _Tools_ icon on the screen of your creature pod, you'll find a little insect icon. Press it and you'll see a list with two commands, _charge_ and_ deploy_. Press the Deploy icon"

"Okay" Jackie tapped the icons as Koki instructed. There was a tiny whirr and a small compartment on the front of the pod opened, revealing a device the size of a AA battery resembling a motionless insect. Jackie gasped as she recognized it. "I remember this!" She exclaimed

Koki chuckled. "I thought you might" She replied. "Each Creature Pod has its own Fly-cam. In the wild, we use them to observe animals safely, but they can also make pretty nifty spies. They can record both audio and visual and transmit them to your pod, which you can then transmit to any other pod."

"Sweet!" Jackie exclaimed as the little mechanical insect suddenly shuddered and its wing-cases split open, revealing paper-thin transparent wings.

"It sure is." Koki agreed. "Use the creature pod to control the cam, and press the record icon when you're ready. The pod can hold up to five hours of video. Just remember to return the fly-cam to your pod when you're done so it can recharge"

"How much battery life does it have?" Jackie asked, as she found the motion controls for the fly-cam on the screen of her creature pod.

"It's solar powered, but since you'll be indoors it will have about 3-4 hrs of battery power, depending on how much it is moving. The more you fly it around, the more power you'll end up using." Koki explained. "Oh and if you want to hear for yourself, there's an earpiece at the bottom of the pod. It's designed to be hard to see"

"Got it" Jackie nodded. "Wish me luck"

"Good luck!" Koki, Aviva, and Jimmy all cheered before the hologram image faded out.

"Okay, let's see here" Jackie tapped the screen of her pod and the cam's wings began to buzz. She brushed her fingers against the screen and the cam suddenly rose into the air. As soon as it did, the screen on her pod changed to show herself, glancing down at the pod in her hands. Jackie looked up at the cam, which as hovering in the air facing her, and smiled. Glancing back to her screen, she carefully guided the cam to descend until it was perched on her shoulder. "Now, let's go see what Zack is up to." She said to the camera as she walked back towards the front of the restaurant.

Slipping through the double doors, she headed back to her table with the cam still perched on her shoulder. The device didn't weight very much, but she could feel it on her shoulder, still as a statue, awaiting orders. Jackie resisted the urge to glance at it, instead keeping her face neutral.

She arrived back at her table just as the waitress arrived. "Hey there you are honey" Her mother smiled at her. "We'll need a few more minutes" She told the waitress, who nodded and headed away. "How's Amy doing?"

"She's doing great" Jackie replied as she took her seat, not looking at her mother, but looking at Ken instead. After a few minutes, Ken caught her eye and gazed back at her. Jackie motioned to the cam on her shoulder. Ken's eyes widened as he recognized the mechanical insect. Jackie jerked with her head towards her parents and mouthed "_distract them"_. Ken nodded and turned to his father.

"So dad did Jackie and I tell you about the fishing festival occurring next month?" Ken asked, loud enough to catch the attention of both o their parents.

"No, I don't think you did" Their father replied, looking mildly interested.

"Well, the thing is, Jackie and I promised to come up with some ideas for activities, but we're kinda stumped, right Jackie?" Jackie, who was preparing to launch the cam, nodded quickly. "So we were kinda hoping you two had some, seeing as how dad is an expert fisherman and mom's a great party planner"

Jackie glanced up to see their parents glance at each other, smiling. Jackie hid the urge to smile herself. Flattery always seemed to work on them. "Well…." They mother finally said, "What exactly is the point of the fishing festival? That should probably be the focus of the activities for the event"

Their father nodded. "And you can be certain that people of all ages will be coming to the festival, so you'd need to include activities that young and old would enjoy. Now granted, many of the people will come to fish, so you'd need to…" Jackie felt the corners of her mouth curl up. She knew that Ken had successfully acquired both of their parent's attention. This was the perfect time to launch the cam. Taking a deep breath to steady her hands, she tapped the screen a few times and it shifted to a view of the table she was sitting at. She moved her finger up and then moved two fingers like she was trying to enlarge the image. She heard a tiny buzzing and saw a metallic blur whiz past her eye and the cam zoomed off her shoulder and away from her table.

After a few minutes, and a couple near misses, Jackie finally guided the fly-cam across the room to the alcove where AJ and the three adults were sitting. Slowly moving her fingers on the screen, she positioned the fly-cam so that it was hovering on the chandelier above the table. She fastened the cam's miniature legs onto the edge of the light fixture, then gazed up at her parents. Satisfied that they were still both wrapped in their discussion with Ken, Jackie flipped over her pod and opened a small compartment at the back, pulling out a tiny earpiece and quickly slipped it into her ear, looping the frame up over her ear so that it was hidden by her hair. Returning to the screen, she pressed another icon and suddenly she could hear what was being said at AJ's table

"….despite the efforts of…you-know-who…we are running on schedule." Mr. Wasteland was saying.

"But doesn't the mayor oppose the development plan?" Mr. Torstyn countered.

Jackie heard Mr. Wasteland snort in what sounded like amusement. "True, but the mayor is only one person. I have been able to convince most of the town council to support the plan." He boasted.

Jackie rolled his eyes, and as she did, she saw the waitress approaching their table again. Satisfied that the cam could see and hear everything, she pressed the record icon and folded her hands over her pod, glancing at the menu as the waitress asked for their orders. She ordered a salad and Ken ordered a stuffed pepper appetizer, and both decided to split a large pesto pizza. As the waitress turned to their parents, Ken and Jackie glanced at each other.

"_All Good?"_ Ken mouthed. Jackie nodded, but inside she still felt nervous. She couldn't explain it, but somehow she knew that this simply spying mission was more important than Ken realized.

* * *

**And Cut!**

**As of now, this story is still on the back-burner, but I've begun taking interest in it again, so hopefully the updates to it will become more frequent. **

**BTW: I was kinda hoping that someone would submit an idea as to what kind of mineral Zach and his 'friends' are looking for. (Hint: It was mentioned on Wild Kratts), but so far no one has given me any. Come on guys! Let me know that you're still out there! **

**Until Next Time! **


	20. Chapter 19

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(Okay, Maaaaybe the hint I gave was a gimmie! But you guys responded and that's what I was hoping for, so here is your answer! Enjoy!)**

**Ch 19**

"_So were the final tests conclusive?"_ Jackie shuddered as Mr. Wasteland's voice crackled from the speaker of her creature pod lying on the bed before her. It had taken nearly an hour for the Kalish family to finish eating dinner, and they had spent another half hour batting around ideas for the fishing festival. By the time Jackie had called the fly-cam back to its terminal in her pod, Zach, AJ, his father, and Mr. Wasteland had left. None of them had once glanced at the Kalish family, and both Ken and Jackie considered this a good sign. Now both of them were sitting in Jackie's bedroom, listening to the recording captured by the fly-cam. "_I would hate to think that I have simply been funding a fool's errand"_

"_Oh I think you'll be pleased Baron" _Zach's smirked on the screen. "_The final tests were completed an hour ago and the results were even better than I had imagined."_

At this, all the others leaned in closer, and Ken and Jackie also leaned closer to the screen.

"_So there's definitely a piece Tellurium down there?"_ AJ asked, his voice barely a whisper.

Zach's smile widened. "_Not just one piece, a whole hoard of Tellurium is down there! Enough for power an entire city for about 50 years!"_ He cackled. AJ and his father exchanged a grin and Mr. Wasteland nodded, looking rather smug. Ken and Jackie glanced at each other.

"_And what about Crescent Lake?"_ Mr. Wasteland suddenly asked, drawing their attention back to the screen. "_What have the tests there concluded?" _

_"Those tests have also been positive"_ Zach replied, now looking so giddy he was practically bounding back and forth in his seat. _"Between the swamp and the lake, there's enough Tellurium to keep us energized for at least a century!" _

_"Excellent!" _Mr. Wasteland laughed while The Torstyns applauded.

"What's Tellurium?" Jackie asked, glancing at Ken

"Beats me" Ken shrugged his shoulders in reply. "But it seems to be something those guys want, and I'll bet it's not for any good purpose"

Jackie nodded nervously and they turned back to the screen.

"_So then we definitely need to secure both sites before we can extract it"_ Mr. Torstyn was speaking now. "_What about the Fishing Festival?"_ Ken and Jackie perked up at this. "_Will that pose a problem?"_

Mr. Wasteland sighed in an annoyed tone. "_Despite my best efforts, the Fishing Festival is still going ahead."_ He admitted. "_However, I do not see this as a major threat. Even though this means we will be unable to mine in the lake until after the festival is completed, the solutions that my people have been dumping into the lake have been decimating the fish population enough that many people are losing interest in the lake. Even if people show up at the festival, there will be precious little they can do there_."

Jackie and Ken gasped in unison, Ken in shock and Jackie in anger. "_He's_ responsible for the pollution in the lake?" Ken exclaimed.

"Why that little….that evil…!" Jackie stammered, clenching her fists in anger. "I ought to…!"

"Shhhh!" Ken shushed his sister as they foursome spoke again.

"_So how soon can we commence mining operations?"_ AJ was asking.

_"I say the sooner the better"_ Zach spoke up. _"I've had my Zac-bots monitoring the swampland and they keep seeing those 'Wild Roos' overhead. I think they've learned that we're interested in the swamp"_

"_How could they have learned our interests?"_ Mr. Wasteland leaned forward, his voice suddenly cold.

"_I…I'm not entirely sure."_ Zach admitted. "_The good news is they obviously don't know where the Tellurium is or they would have seized it by now. But I've tangled with those enviro-punks enough times to know that they are uncommonly lucky and annoyingly resourceful. If we leave the Tellurium in the ground for too long, they'll find it"_

_"I agree" _Mr. Torstyn added. "_It serves no purpose to wait"_

Mr. Wasteland looked thoughtful for a moment, then nodded. "_Very well. I'll contact the crews and tell them to commence operations tonight. We'll need to think of an excuse to keep people away from the swampland while we're working" _

"_Psaw! No need for crews! My Zac-bots can get the Tellurium out easily"_ Zach boasted. "_We could have the entire hoard out by morning!"_

_"Yeah, if you were going to be obvious"_ AJ countered, and they could see him make a face at Zach. "_Sending in your Zac Bots like that would only alert the Wild Krew to our intentions, and I've seen them take down your tin toys before"_ AJ smirked as Zach growled at him.

"_AJ is right"_ His father commented and AJ's smirk grew. _"We need to divide their attention, we need a diversion"_

"_Indeed_" Mr. Wasteland thought for a moment, then a smile began to creep up his face. "_And I think I have one_." He turned to Zach. "_Send your Zac Bots to different countries around the world, and have them target environmental habitats. Have them cause as much damage as possible, to draw the Wild Krew away and to split them up. While that's happening, keep some of your Zac Bots in reserve and send them to the swampland."_

Zach stared for a moment, than he laughed. _"Ah divide and conquer! I love it!_" Then he paused. "_But what about Crescent Lake?_"

"_Leave that to me_" Mr. Torstyn suddenly spoke up. "_We may not be able to do anything on the lake until after the Fishing Festival, but we can still identify any possible hot spots our preliminary scans missed. After all, with the amount of damage mining in Crescent Lake could do, we'll need to get in and out fast, so it would be beneficial to make sure we know where every chunk of the mineral is. I've already got a sub at the lake, scanning the lake bottom shouldn't be a problem."_

"_Excellent. The Fishing Festival is three days from now. That should give us plenty of time to see just how much Tellurium is under the lake. How soon can you get your Zac-bots mobilized?_" Mr. Wasteland asked Zach.

"_As soon as I get back to my plane_." Zach answered. "_They should be leaving within the hour_."

"_Good, and remember, don't send your bots to the swamp until after you confirm that the Wild Krew has taken the bait."_

Zach nodded as their food arrived. After the waitress had distributed their orders and departed, Mr. Wasteland raised his glass. _"Gentlemen, I'd like to propose a toast, to a great and profitable investment. The amount of Tellurium we stand to mine from these two sites is going to make us all very rich men"_

_"Hear Hear!_" The four people chinked glasses and the rest of the meal passed in silence. As they got up to leave a little while later, Ken and Jackie turned to stare at each other, their expressions mirror images of horror.

"I don't believe it!" Ken moaned, his face turning pale, while Jackie's turned red.

"Those evil...! Those brutes! They're destroying the lake and now they're gonna destroy the swamp! Call the Wild Krew! They need to know about this!" She shrilled

"I'm on it!" Ken pounded the central button on the paw print and there was a _click!_ "Calling the Wild Krew! Calling the Wild Krew! This is KK with a creature emergency! Wild Krew please respond!"

For a few minutes there was no reply, then a beam of light shot up from the pod and solidified into Jimmy Z. "What's up you guys?" He asked, a concerned look on his face.

"We found out what Zach and his buddies are up to!" Ken announced. "They're after something called Tellurium"

Jimmy Z's eyes widened, but he was suddenly shoved out of view and replaced by a wide-eyed Koki. "Did you say Tellurium?" She asked nervously.

"Yeah? You know what it is?" Ken raised an eyebrow at Koki's jittery reaction

"Of course I know what it is! Tellurium is a crystalline energy source that's more commonly found in outer space than it is on Earth. We use it to power our HQ and all our gear."

"From outer space?" Jackie gasped and turned to Ken. "That's why AJ was having Leo and the others look for books about Space rocks!"

"It's been a while since we've been able to find any and we're starting to run low" Koki added "If we run out of Tellurium completely, our ship will lose all power"

Ken nodded "Well, according to what Jackie's fly-cam recorded, there's supposedly a big hoard of Tellurium buried somewhere beneath the swamp!"

* * *

"Beneath the swamp?" Martin repeated in surprise inside the Tortuga.

"So _that's_ why Zach has been so interested in the Swampland!" Chris exclaimed, pounding his fist into his palm. "He's looking for Tellurium!"

"If Zach gets his hands on that Tellurium, he can use it to build inventions that could impede our mission!" Aviva exclaimed.

"Not to mention the amount of damage he could cause to the swamp while he's mining!" Koki added

"All those animals made homeless!" Martin cried out in horror.

"And that's not all. Zach also suspects that there is Tellurium hidden underneath Crescent Lake!" Ken added. He quickly explained what he and Jackie had heard. The Krew were outraged to learn that Mr. Wasteland had been behind the pollution killing the animals in the lake.

"We cannot let those greedy people get away with this!" Martin clenched his fists in anger.

"So how can we stop them?" Jimmy wondered

"Simple! We find the Tellurium first!" Chris suggested. "And then we make sure Zach can't get to it!"

"Oh yeah!" Martin crowed before giving Chris a high five.

"Luckily, our scanners are more advanced than Zach's! It shouldn't take long for me to find the Tellurium!" Koki dashed over to her database, but scarcely had she typed in a command when an alarm suddenly started blaring from above her console. "Woah, hang on! We've got a Wild Krew alert from Allison!"

Koki typed a few keys and Allison's face appeared on the screen, looking flustered. Ken and Jackie could see her too. "Guys, thank goodness I got through!" She blurted out as soon as the picture cleared. "I've been getting calls from Kritters all across the world! Zach has sent multiple Zach-bots to attack multiple habitats simultaneously!"

"Oh no!" Jackie cried out. "It's happening already!"

"This is Zach's plan." Ken explained to the others. "He's sending out Zach Bots to multiple locations to distract you so he and the others can get the Tellurium unopposed"

"Tellurium?" Allison exclaimed "Where?"

"Beneath the Swamp" Ken explained.

"And according to Zach, there may be some beneath Crescent Lake as well" Jackie added. Allison gasped, then suddenly turned to glance at something the others couldn't see and her face fell.

"How bad are things out there Allison? Don't sugarcoat it!" Koki's eyes narrowed on the last remark.

"Bad. Very bad" Allison reported sadly. "We've got Zach-bots attacking a rain-forest in the Congo, kidnapping animals off the Kenya savanna, and dropping wild monkeys in Madagascar!" As Allison spoke, images of these events appeared on the screen, showing Zach Bots with saw arms cutting through rain-forest trees like they were matchsticks, Zach Bots with net arms swooping baby animals off the grasslands, and flying Zach-bots dropping monkeys into another forest. The camera zoomed in to show these monkeys casing lemurs around the tree branches.

"Oh no!" Jimmy literally fell back into a chair.

"Zach has hit an all time low!" Aviva growled, her dark look mirrored on the faces of the rest of the Krew

"I'll say! So what's our plan?" Koki turned to the others.

"We have to stop the Zach bots." Chris took charge. "Martin and I will head to the savanna. Aviva, you and Jimmy head to Madagascar. Those lemurs can't last long against the more-aggressive monkeys" Aviva and Jimmy nodded as Chris turned to Koki. "You think you can protect the Congo rain-forest on your own?" He asked.

Koki snorted "In my sleep!" She boasted. "I may be a computer whiz, but I know how to thrash Zac-bots!"

"Okay Wild Krew, let's move out!" Chris cried

"TO THE CREATURE RESCUE!" The Krew replied and began to dash in different directions

"Wait! What about the Tellurium?" Jackie's cry made them pause. "That's why Zach's doing all this in the first place! Are you just gonna let him get away with taking it?"

The Krew members glanced at each other. When Martin finally glanced back up at them, he looked solemn. "I guess so" He confessed.

"WHAT?" Ken and Jackie both exclaimed.

"But he's gonna ruin the swampland!" Ken reminded them. 'All that land destroyed, all those animals homeless!"

"This is what the Wild Krew is supposed to do!" Jackie eyes were starting to run. "You're supposed to protect the environment!"

"It's not that we don't care about the Swampland" Martin hastily added, "But we can't ignore the destruction that Zach is causing elsewhere."

"As powerful as we are, there are only five of us, and we're all needed elsewhere" Jimmy agreed. The rest of the Krew nodded and Jackie's shoulders visibly slumped. She looked like she was on the verge of tears.

"Then we'll do it ourselves!" Ken suddenly said

"What?" Jackie glanced at him

"Huh?" The Krew exclaimed as one.

"I said, _we'll_ do it" Ken repeated, his voice growing bolder. "We're the only ones who know about Zach's plan, and we're the closest to both the swamp and Crescent Lake. We're in the best position to do something about it"

"But what can _we_ do?" Jackie's sad eyes seemed to bore into his like a drill, her sadness threatening to overtake him.

"I don't know" Ken admitted, looking away for a second, then looked back up. "But we have to do _something!_ Think of all the wildlife, all that beauty that will be destroyed if Zach and his partners succeed!"

Jackie lip stopped trembling and took a breath. When she opened her eyes again, they shone with a determined gleam. "You're right. We'll figure something out. We've got to!" With that, the siblings rose to their feet.

"Woah, hold on a second!" The siblings turned back to the Kratt Brothers. "It's great that you guys are so determined, but you'll be going up against lots of Zach-Bots, and possibly Zach himself!" Chris warned.

"We know" Ken said simply, reaching over to switch off the pod. "Wish us luck"

"Ken, wait!" Koki cried, but Ken and Jackie had already hung up. She pressed a key, trying to re-establish a connection, but there was only static on the screen.

"Stubborn!" Aviva exclaimed, frowning at the screen. "Those kids are so stubborn!"

"I thought that was one of the reasons we approached them" Jimmy scratched his head.

"We approached them because of their determination to help the Environment" Martin reminded him, "And I think we're gonna see a lot more of that at the night goes on"

"Bro, what are you thinking?" Chris asked accusingly, but Martin could see his brother's mouth begin to curl upwards.

"Let's face it. Those kids are gonna fight the Zach-Bots regardless of what we say to them." Martin reasoned. "If we can't stop them, the least we can do is make sure they're prepared."

"And how are we gonna do that?" Koki asked, her hands on her hips.

Martin didn't answer right away, instead he allowed a smile to spread across his face until he was grinning from ear to ear. "Only one way" He said, tapping the vest he was wearing.

"All right!" Chris exclaimed, pumping his fist.

"Seriously?" Jimmy's eyes widened

"Oh no! Forget it, Martin!" Aviva shook her head, slamming her hands down on the center table.

"They're not ready!" Koki added. "They barely got fitted a week ago! I bet they don't even know the implants are there!"

"Neither did we at first, remember? And we've done alright so far!" Chris countered.

"Define 'all right'!" Koki challenged and Chris frowned at her.

"What you're suggesting is out of the question!" Aviva stated loudly. "It took us months of training to master the Zobooan powers the implants gave us, and that was without the added pressure of a Zach-attack. Now you expect those two kids to master their new abilities in a single night?"

"What other choice do we have?" Martin responded. "Let Zach steal the motherload of Tellurium from under our noses, while at the same time causing what may well be irreversible damage to a habitat?" Aviva' determined look wavered for a second, but she still shook her head.

"Uh guys" Jimmy spoke up. "You know that I'm usually the last person to advise taking risks like this, but I'm actually gonna agree with the Kratt Bros on this one"

"You are?" Martin, Chris, Koki, and Aviva all looked amazed, as did Allison, who was still watching them from the screen.

"Let's face it, we all knew this day was coming. Granted I wish it had come later and..." Jimmy gulped nervously before continuing. "...that the stakes weren't quite as high, but Martin's right. What other choice do we have? The bottom line is, we can't get to the swampland and they can."

Koki and Aviva glanced at each other before sighing in defeat. "Fine!" Koki huffed.

"Yes!" The Kratt brothers cheered. "The Wild Krew's getting new members!"

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Allison piped up from the screen. "You said that once the implants are active, there's no going back"

"Positive" Chris assured her as the Krew scattered to different areas of the room. "Okay. Let's get to work. Koki, keep an eye on those Zach attacks"

"I'm on it!" Koki began typing away at her station.

"Jimmy, set course for Africa. We'll stop at the Congo first"

"Roger!" Jimmy darted through an open doorway.

"Aviva, how much more time do you need until they're ready?" Chris glanced over at Aviva's workstation.

"Just need a little while to finish the coding" Aviva replied, not glancing up from the large magnifying glass she was currently gazing through. "I should be ready by the time we drop Koki off"

"Bro, Ken and Jackie are gonna need some awesome creature powers when they're going up against the Zac-Bots."

"Reading your mind Bro" Martin winked and stepped out of the room. "I'll be in the vault"

Chris turned back to face Allison on the screen. "Okay Allison, once we teleport the suits to you, it's your job to get them to Ken and Jackie. Think you can find them?"

"Easily enough" Allison nodded. "I can follow the GPS signal of their creature pods"

Chris nodded. "Take the emergency buzz bike. It should still have enough of a charge" He instructed.

"Got it. I'll be waiting. I sure hope you guys know what you're doing" Allison's face was creased with worry as she signed off.

"So do I, Allison" Chris muttered under his breath as he began typing on a keyboard.

* * *

**And Cut!**

**So, Ken and Jackie are joining the Wild Krew literally! That means they'll be able to transform like the others! What animal forms do you think that Ken and Jackie will use in their fight against the Zach-bots?**

**Keep on replying, to let me know that you guys are still with me!**

**Until next time!**


	21. Chapter 20

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(Here we go again! enjoy!)**

**Ch 20**

Ken pulled back the sheets on his bed, then arranged his pillows in the center of the bed before throwing the sheet and comforter back over them. Stepping back, he examined his work and nodded. To the casual observer, it would appear like he was sleeping. Bending over to brush a ball of lint off his black jeans, Ken laced up his hiking boots before pulling a black sweatshirt over his head. Grabbing his backpack, he slowly eased open his door and stepped into the hallway, quietly closing it. As he turned around, Jackie's door opened and his sister stepped out wearing black leggings and a large black pullover. She had tucked her hair under a black knit cap and carried a small black knapsack.

"You ready?" She whispered, looking about as nervous as Ken felt, though he was trying not to show it.

"Yeah. Let's go" Ken whispered back. The two siblings crept slowly down the stairs, stepping lightly on the squeaky boards. They heard the TV blare from the living room and peeked in to see their parents watching a comedy together. Ken heard Jackie groan behind him and couldn't blame her. That comedy was a family favorite and Ken wished for a moment that he could be in there, but they had work to do. The siblings darted into the kitchen and quietly eased open the back door. Slipping outside, they dashed over to the garage, got their bikes and pedaled out into the street. As the sun was beginning to set behind the hills in the distance, the two siblings cycled down the road as fast as they could.

"So, any ideas for what we're gonna do?" Jackie called as they cycled towards the swampland.

"Not a clue!" Ken called back over the rush of wind. "But we'll figure that out once we get there!"

"Yeah, _if_ we can get there in time!" Jackie groaned as they reached the bottom of the hill and she eyes the rise on the other side. "It'll be midnight when we get there at this rate!"

"It will take us far longer if we stop now! Come on!" Ken started forwards when something suddenly dropped down in front of them. A giant bug! Jackie shrieked, covering her eyes, and Ken jumped backwards, which caused his legs to tangle with the frame on his bike and both cycle and rider went down in a twisted heap.

"Oops, sorry! Are you alright?" Both Ken and Jackie looked up as Allison removed the motorcycle helmet she was wearing. She was sitting on a buzz bike and was wearing black like they were.

"Allison! What are you doing here?" Jackie exclaimed.

"The Krew sent me." Allison answered as she hopped off the bike, which hovered about a foot on the ground, and 'floated' it over to a strand of trees that grew alongside the road. "They have something for the both of you" Perking up at this, Ken and Jackie wheeled their bikes over to the thick trees, which shielded them from the road. Allison had opened up the storage compartment in the 'abdomen' of the bike and was rummaging around inside of it.

"What is it?" Jackie asked.

"Just a little something to help you deal with the Zach Bots" Allison replied in a smug sort of way. She finally straightened up, holding a pair of black vests with colored markings, just like the ones that they had seen the members of the Krew wearing, only different colored. Jackie handed the cream one to Jackie and tossed the grey one to Ken. "Put these on" She instructed.

Ken hesitated "But…"

"Just do it" Allison urged and Ken complied. As he slipped the vest on, he suddenly felt a series of strange tingles, like tiny shocks spreading up and down his body. As he straightened it, his chest suddenly felt cold, like he'd swallowed a large ice cube. Glancing down, he saw that the paw-shaped emblem on his vest was now glowing with a soft grey light, like a glow stick. Ken gasped as the glow suddenly got brighter and a spread out from the paw print, quickly encasing his body in a grey halo of light. Hearing a gasp from Jackie, he glanced up to see her encased in a soft cream-colored light. She met his gaze, her mouth open and her eyes wide.

"Wh-what just happened?" She stammered.

"You Zobooan implants just activated, that's what happened" Allison replied, rummaging through the buzz bike's compartment again, this time pulling out a grey-lined helmet. "Here" She tossed the grey one to Ken, who caught it, feeling very confused.

"What do you mean our 'implants'?" Ken asked.

Allison paused and slowly turned to face them, her mouth twisted into a series of frowns, as if she was trying to work out what to say. "Do you remember when you first met the Krew? How you were knocked out for a little while?" She finally asked. Ken and Jackie nodded. "Well, while you were out, both of you were outfitted with bionic implants, just like the members of the Wild Krew"

Jackie gasped and Ken's eyes widened. "And what…exactly do these bionic implants do?" He asked.

Allison's frown melted into a smile. "They'll let you harness the powers of the animal kingdom" She replied smugly. "You've seen the Krew members transform into various animal forms, right?"

Ken nodded, then his eyes suddenly widened as realization hit him. "Wait, are you saying…?"

Allison nodded. "Now the two of you can do the same thing"

Jackie's jaw dropped. "Seriously?"

"Dead serious" Allison nodded as she stepped up to Jackie and pointed to the center of the paw symbol. "This is your activation button. Whenever you come into contact with an animal, press it and your implants will transform you into a form resembling that animal. To transform back, just press the button again" She explained. The then pointed to the three smaller buttons over the big one. "These smaller buttons control various features of the implants. Press the center button before the big one and you will shrink down to the proper size of the animal. The rightmost one will transform you into a full version of that animal, rather than a humanized version, and the leftmost one will allow you to update your implants with any new abilities that the Krew discover, 'cause there's still so much we're still learning about the world's creatures"

"Cool!" Jackie exclaimed, her eyes sparkling as she ran her fingers across the glowing paw print. Ken did the same. The glowing paw print felt warm, almost like a tiny sun in his chest. "We're like superheroes!"

Allison giggled "Yeah, you kind of are"

"So, did the Krew explain to you exactly what they wanted us to do?" He asked, glancing back up at Allison.

"No, but I've got a plan." Allison explained, pulling out her creature pod and projecting a holographic map of the swampland. Ken and Jackie could see a large cluster of red dots gathered near the center of the swampland. "These red dots are Zach-Bots, and as you can see, there's a lot of them."

"No kidding" Ken observed, trying to count how many dots there were.

"Like the Krew mentioned earlier, we don't just have to get the Zach Bots away from the Tellurium, we need to secure the Tellurium itself, or Zach will just keep coming back to get it." Allison explained. "Which means we need to harvest it from the swamp ourselves before Zach can get away with it"

"But won't we damage the swamp by doing that?" Jackie asked, suddenly looking uneasy.

Allison shook her head. "Not if you use your creature powers. There may still be some damage, but it will be localized and, more importantly, kept to a minimum, which is NOT what will happen if Zach keeps doing what he's doing.

"So what's the plan?"

"It's simple actually." Allison explained, putting her creature pod away. "One of you needs to battle the Zach-Bots in the air with peregrine falcon powers, while the other uses frog powers to deal with any Zach Bots that are under the water."

"I call the falcon powers!" Jackie shot her hand up into the air.

"I was hoping you'd say that" Allison grinned at her, then turned to Ken. "While the two of you are fighting the Zach bots, I'll try to locate as many of the Tellurium deposits as I can. Ken, I'm going to need your help getting them out, which means that most of the battling will be done by Jackie. Got it?"

"Got it" Ken and Jackie nodded.

"So, how do we activate these again?" Jackie asked, pressing the large button on her vest.

"We need to touch an animal" Ken reminded her, then he glanced up at the surrounding trees. "Which may be more difficult than expected since I don't see any falcons here" He added.

"That's the beauty of the design, it doesn't have to be the actual animal" Allison replied as she held out her hand. Clutched in her fingers was a long black feather. "As long as it contains the animal's DNA, it will work"

"Sweet" Jackie squealed, taking the feather from Allison.

"You might want to step back Ken" Allison warned as she backed away from Jackie. Ken also complied, moving to stand by Allison next to the Buzz Bike "You ready?" Allison asked Jackie.

"Oh, you know it!" Jackie exclaimed, her whole body quivering with excitement.

"Go for it sis!"

Jackie took a deep breath, clutched the feather in one shaking hand, and slapped her other hand down on the big paw print

As soon as Jackie's hand came in contact with the paw print it glowed and the image of a bird appeared in the center of the activation button. Slowly the glow spread to giver Jackie's entire body, and there was a bright flash and a series of strange buzzing noises, followed by an inhumane screech. Jackie's hands shot away from the sides of her body, and light spilled from her palms before solidifying into what looked like a pair of wings. Jackie seemed to rise a foot higher in the air and light pooled around her face and legs. As the light faded, Ken's eyes widened and his jaw dropped "Woah" He gasped.

Ken's sister was gone. In her place stood what looked like a man-shaped falcon with black-and-cream colored feathers, except it was as tall as Allison. The creature seemed to shudder and large, but narrow wings whipped from its sides, while sharp looking talons gripped the dirt it stood on. "Well, how do I look?" Jackie asked nervously, staring at them with sharp raptor eyes. A falcon beak snapped as she spoke and the cream-colored feathers on her chest suddenly flared out, making her look even bigger.

"You look like a giant falcon." Ken commented. "How do you feel?"

"I feel…kinda weird" Jackie confessed, glancing around. "Everything looks so different, and I…" Jackie paused and glanced up to the sky. "I feel like the sky is calling to me"

"That's the implant's programming." Allison explained as she hopped back onto her buzz bike and handed Ken a helmet before slipping on her own. "Can you hear me?" She said, tapping something on the base of her helmet. Jackie nodded her falcon head. "Good, now remember your job is to keep the Zack Bots occupied, keep their attention on you and not on the tellurium. Got it?"

"Yeah"

"OK, then get going. And good luck!"

"Tear 'em apart sis!" Ken cheered as Jackie spread her knew wings and pushed down hard. Ken turned his face away from the sudden rush of wind as Jackie shot into the air like a bullet.

"Ow Jackie! There's no need to scream so loud! I can hear you just fine!" Allison suddenly scolded, tapping the side of her helmet. Ken quickly strapped his on just in time to hear Jackie's voice crackle through a speaker next to his ear.

_"Sorry! I didn't realize just how fast I'd be going!"_ Jackie squealed, sounding panicked. _"And these wings are harder to work than I thought!"_ There was a loud rustling over the speaker, like Jackie was struggling to control her flight. Ken glanced up to see Jackie tumble in the air, her wings beading rapidly. She was already high enough that she looked really small, more like a drunken pigeon than a falcon.

"Keep it together sis!" Ken soothed, hoping that Jackie could hear him. He was rewarded when Allison shot him a thumbs up. "Just think of yourself as a baby bird learning to fly. You've seen how birds fly, they push down on the air with their wings to lift themselves up. Feel the air moving through your feathers!" Ken chuckled as he realized how corny that last part sounded.

"_Easy for you to say!"_ Jackie's voice seemed to boom in his head. "_Wooaahh!_" She screamed as she suddenly dropped in altitude for several seconds, making Ken and Allison wince as what sounded like rushing wind roared through the speakers in their helmets.

"Sis, you've gotta focus! You have to _be_ the falcon!" Ken coached, thinking to back what they had always watched the Kratt Brothers do on TV. "Remember, Nature's got know-how, but you need to stop fighting it and let Nature work for you!"

_"Okay. Okay. I think I've got the hang of it now"_ Jackie's voice sounded more confident and up above, they could see that Jackie had pulled out of her fall and her wing beats were looking more rhythmical as she hovered about 100 ft above them. _"See you at the swampland!"_ With that, the radio feed cut off and Jackie shot off like a bullet towards the distant marsh.

"Ok. Let's go!" Ken wrapped his arms around Allison's waist as the older girl gunned the Buzz Bike motor. The wings buzzed and the bike shot off down the road.

* * *

High in the sky above, Jackie flapped her new falcon wings hard, gaining altitude with each beat. "Wow" She breathed as she glanced around her, the clouds around her, the land below her, stretching as for as the eye would see, and her new falcon eyes could see _so_ much farther than her human eyes ever could. She saw the swampland ahead of her, still several or so miles away and leaned towards it, spreading her wings as wide as she could. She knew that most falcon species soared while hunting, even though their wings were not designed for it. As she flew along, she also realized something else. She had always thought that soaring was gliding on an invisible zip line, but she now understood that it was more like hopping from one column of warm air to the next. She could actually feel the hot air rising from the earth catch along her wings and chest and push her up with it.

Glancing ahead, she noticed that she was veering off course, but as soon as she thought this, she felt a twitch in her new tail feathers and she drifted back onto target. "Ken's right. Nature _does_ have know-how"

Just then, she heard static in her ear, then Ken's voice rang out. "_How's it going up there, sis?"_

"Ken" Jackie replied, the awe in her voice clear. "You have _got_ to try this! This is amazing!"

Ken laughed "_Oh I'm sure my turn will come soon enough. Can you see the Zach Bots?"_

Jackie squinted at the swampland, then frowned at what she saw A column of at least twenty black-and-grey robots with saw-like arms were cutting through trees, while a group of others with claw-like arms were tearing up the ground . "Yeah, I can see them all right, but I don't need falcon eyes to find them. They're not even _trying_ to hide what they're doing!"

"There's a feature on your creature pod that will let us see what you see. Just press the button." Allison instructed. Jackie glanced down at her chest. Below the glowing buttons, she spotted the outline of the pod and tapped it with her beak. Swinging her head back up, she focused on the Zach-bots again, and heard Allison and Ken exclaim in dismay.

"_Those things are like floating bulldozers!_" Ken sounded angry. "_They're destroying everything!_"

"_Unfortunately, that's how corporate extraction often works. They just plow through everything to get what they're looking for"_ Allison replied grimly.

Jackie suddenly thought of something. "So, how exactly do I fight those bots? They've got buzz saws and pincers!"

"_And you have falcon powers_." Ken replied "_How do falcons hunt their prey?_"

Jackie felt herself grin "They stoop!"

"_Exactly, they can reach speeds of nearly 200 miles per hour in a stoop_"

"_And the kinetic energy you'll generate on the way down, combined with your current mass..._" Allison paused, making a few mental calculations. "..._should generate enough force that you'll shatter those bots on impact, or at the very least disable them_."

"Got it" Jackie signed off. She glanced down at the Zach-bots, feeling a surge of anger flood through her. Then a blur of movement caught her eye and she gasped as she saw a pair of goshawks scream out of one of the trees, attacking one of the Zach-bots head on, only to be swatted aside as the metal monster floated towards the tree the hawks had come from, buzz saw arm raised. The goshawks screamed as one and dive bombed the robot again and Jackie narrowed her eyes, squinting at the tree, praying the reason for the goshawk's attack was not what she thought it was. Her heart sank as she spotted the outline of a nest in the higher branches, and her blood then turned to ice as she caught movement inside the nest.

"No!" Jackie screamed and before she knew what she was doing, she had folded her wings and dived. The wind whistled through her feathers as she fell like an arrow towards the earth below. As her speed increased, the world around her blurred, but the robot, and the hawks, remained crystal clear. Suddenly, in their relentless attack of the zach-bot, both hawks veered right in her path. Jackie, now only a few seconds from impact, opened her beak and screamed as she swung her legs forward, talons out and extended. The hawks glanced up, screamed back, and somehow darted out of the way the way just as the Zach-Bot looked up and raised its saw arm.

ZIINNGGGGG! Jackie barely felt the impact as her talons sliced into the robot. Sparks of electricity filled the air and the upside-down cone-shaped bot collapsed to the wet ground, sparkign even more as water found its way through the gashes in its metal shell. Jackie beat her wings, rising quickly, glancing around. She sighed with relief as she saw the goshawks flying back towards their nest. Then an electronic beep made her look down, and her relief turned to dread. There were at least forty Zach-bots below her, and they were all gazing up at her with their eerie red eyes. Then, on some unseen signal, four of them, all with pincer arms, lifted off the floor and floated towards her, their pincers clicking menacingly. Jackie gulped. "What have I gotten myself into?" She asked herself as she climbed higher into the air.

* * *

"I hope Jackie can handle this" Ken mused as Allison set the Buzz Bike down at the very edge of the marshland.

"She'll be fine" Allison assured him as she pulled off her helmet. "We can help her best by getting our job done." She hopped off the bike and walked over to the water's edge.

"What are you doing?" Ken asked, removing his helmet and setting it on the bike. Allison didn't answer, but she suddenly lunged forward and her hands clasped around something. Rising to her feet, she turned back as Ken ran up to her and parted her fingers. A small black frog sat cupped in her hands.

"You ready to try it?" Allison asked him, a smile on her face.

Ken glanced at her, then at the frog, which gazed calmly up at him, then down at the glowing button on his chest. Taking a steadying breath, he placed his right index finger on the frog's slimy skin, feeling the animal shift slightly underneath his finger. "Yeah, I'm ready" He proclaimed, firmly pressing teh glowing button with his other finger. The button glowed, Ken heard a whir, and his vision was flooded with gray light.

* * *

**And Cut!**

**So the battle begins! But how will it end? Will Jackie be able to keep the Zach Bots at bay? And how will Ken's frog powers help out? ****To find out, keep watching!**

**Special thanks to those reviewers who suggested frog powers, this chapter is for you guys! **

**And don't forget to review! Seriously, a good comment goes a long way!**

**Until next time! **


	22. Chapter 21

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(Here we go again! enjoy!)**

**Ch 21**

Ken clenched his teeth as he felt a strong tingling, like an electric current zooming through his body, from one limb to the next. It started in his arms and hands, which began to contort and swell, then spread down to his legs, which he could feel stretching. His face stretched too, and he could feel his eyes move to different positions on his head. It didn't hurt, but is sure felt weird!

With a final gray flash, the light disappeared. Ken was still standing on his hind legs, but as he glanced down, he saw that they were now smoky gray with darker splotches and is feet were covered with white webbing, along with his hands. "Cool!" He exclaimed, then started as he realized his voice was deeper.

Hearing Allison chuckle, he glanced up to see that she had removed her shirt, revealing a wet-suit underneath. Pulling a face mask from the buzz bike, she turned to face Ken while slipping the mask over her head. "Okay Ken. Here's the plan. I'll dive down and scan for the largest veins of tellurium on the swamp bed, Once I find them, I'll place a jammer on top of the vein that will mask their energy signature from Zach's sensors. You use your frog powers to fight off any Zach-bots that try to stop us, okay?"

"Got it" Ken nodded before turning to the water and bracing with his new legs. "Geronimo!" He cried as he sprang up, leaping about ten feet into the air before diving into the water. He kicked out with his feet in the special stroke he had seen frogs do, the frog kick, and was zooming through the water like a blur.

_"Hey Ken! Wait up! I'm not as fast as you!"_ Allison's call through the radio made Ken pause and glance back. He could barely see Allison, who was now swimming along the muddy floor of the waterway with a small scanner and flashlight clutched in one hand.

"Oops, sorry!" As Ken began to swim back towards Allison, the scanner in her hand beeped. Pausing, Allison swept the beam of the light over the mud bank in front of her and the beeping got louder.

"_Bingo!"_ Allison smiled up at Ken though the clear glass of her mask, then she reached into the underwater bag looped over her shoulder and pulled out what looked like a small transmitter shaped like a spike no larger than a pencil. Twisting the top, she stabbed the point into the ground. "_There! That's one chunk Zach's not gonna find!"_ She announced before picking up the scanner and moving down the waterway. Ken made to follow when movement above them drew his attention, and his heart stopped. Peering down at them through the water surface were two Zach Bots with buzz-saw arms. As Ken watched, both silently slipped into the water and propelled themselves towards Allison, who remained unaware of the robot's presence.

"Oh no you don't" Ken growled, accelerating towards the robots, kicking his legs more quickly. _His legs!"_ Ken's eyes widened as an idea entered his mind. _It's worth a try!_ With that, he surged towards the Zach-Bots, who somehow heard him coming and turned about to face him, but by then he was right in front of them. As the Zach-bots raised their buzz-saw arms, which whirred loudly under the water, Ken flipped around, and kicked out with his legs. His webbed feet slammed into both Zach-bots, sending all three of them shooting backwards. Ken quickly recovered and steadied himself in the water, but the Zach bots were not so lucky. One slammed into the large roots of a tree that stuck out of the muddy bank, while the other slammed into the bank itself, nearly hitting Allison in the process. Ken saw the girl jump and glance up, darting backwards when she saw the Zach Bots, but then relax when she saw that they were disabled.

"_Thanks"_ She said, turning back to Ken and smiling. Ken smiled back with his frog lips just as Allison's scanner beeped again, the beam pointing to a spot just below one of the ruined Zach bots. Allison pulled out another spike and stabbed it into the soft ground, but she had scarcely moved the scanner away when it beeped again. "_This may take a while"_ She said as she swam over to where the beam was not pointing. "_Ken, check on Jackie would you? I'd rather not be caught by surprise like that again"_

"I'll bet" Ken chuckled as he pressed one of the buttons on his pod. "Jackie? How are things going up there?

**Above the Swampland:**

"It's not exactly a picnic up here!" Jackie cried as she swerved to avoid the snapping pincers of one of the Zac Bots. She pumped her wings, shooting upward with the robot in hot pursuit. "Woah!" She screamed as she spotted another robot diving at her. "These metal monsters are all over me!" She yelled as she dodged the diving robot only to almost fly headlong into another one. Tucking up her legs, she lashed out with her talons, cutting though the outer shell of the machine, which sparked and then dropped from the sky.

_"Good, just keep them busy long enough for Allison to hide the Tellurium signals"_ Ken's voice echoed in her ears.

"That's not gonna be a problem!" Jackie replied as she sliced through two Zach-bots at once. As the two machines fell to the swamp below, Jackie glanced around and saw that there were only about a half-dozen Zach-bots left in the air, but though they were watching her, they made no move towards her. "What are you guys waiting for?" Jackie wondered aloud.

"Well well well" A high nasally voice from behind Jackie made the girl jump in midair. Looking around, she saw Zach Varmitech himself standing on a floating platform behind her. His chest was encased in some kind of armor that supported two large robotic arms that resembled mantis arms. "What do we have here? A 'Wild Roo' wannabe?"

"Zach" Jackie snarled as she turned her body to face him.

"Indeed" Zach grinned smugly at Jackie. "And you are?"

"About to teach you a lesson about messing with Mother Nature" Jackie spat, snapping her 'beak' fiercely at him. Zach flinched, but quickly regained his composure.

"Certainly my dear, but first, allow me to teach you a lesson, about minding your own business!" As he spoke, the mantis-arms on his armor suddenly lashed out quicker than lightning and Jackie screamed as she felt them rip into her falcon wings. With a cackling laugh, Zach pulled the arms back, tearing off a bunch of feathers, causing Jackie to fall from the sky.

"Mayday! Mayday! Zach's here! He's grounded me!" Jackie reported urgently as she dove towards the swamp below.

_"Get out of there Jackie!"_ Allison responded. _"There's nothing more you can do!" _

"I'm falling from the sky right now!" Jackie screamed as she watched the swamp get nearer and nearer. Though the ground looked soft, Jackie was pretty sure she would at least break a few bones upon landing. "Ken, help me!"

"_I see you sis, hand on!"_ Ken's voice did not reassure Jackie as she pressed the deactivation button, making her falcon form dissappear. Just then, the water to her left erupted upwards and a dark humanoid shape leapt upwards with hands outspread. Jackie felt her brother's slimy arms catch her and then throw her sideways, causing her to land in the water with a great splash. Slipping on the underwater breathing apparatus in her helmet, Jackie grabbed Ken's hand as her froggy brother jetted away through the water.

"_Jackie, are you okay?"_ Allison's voice sounded worried.

"I'm fine" Jackie confirmed. "But there's still a number of Zach-Bots up there and now Zach himself is here"

_"I've almost gotten all the veins cloaked" _Allison replied. "_Just keep him busy for a little while longer"_

"_I'm gonna drop you off, okay? See if you can find another animal"_ Ken instructed as he deposited his sister among the twisted roots of a large tree, then jetted away before darting away towards where he had caught Jackie. _"I owe Zach some payback"_ Jackie heard Ken mutter as he disappeared into the darkness.

* * *

Zach Varmitech laughed as he watched the falcon-girl fall towards the swamp. In the back of his mind, it bothered him that he didn't recognize the girl, but at this point it didn't really matter. "These robo-mantis arms work even better than I thought" He crooned as he patted his robotic appendages, witch flexed in and out almost in response. "I may just have to patent these babies"

Suddenly, a loud splash drew his attention and he glanced back down to see a column of water climbing out of the water below. "Hm, well, so much for the Wild Krew's backup" He laughed again before turning back to the assembled Zach Bots. "Okay, back to work! Bring me that Tellurium!" He ordered, then glanced down at his scanner. "_What?"_ He gasped. His device, which had previously showed massive energy readings, was now barely showing any. "Where'd the Tellurium go?" He asked aloud, twirling the knobs. Then before his eyes, one of the few signals that was left on his screen suddenly vanished. Glancing down at the water, he spotted a faint outline right below him and his eyes narrowed. "I smell a rat" He muttered, before pointing to a spot directly below him. "Get down there and find out what's going on!" He ordered. The seven remaining Zach-bots, who had been fanning out in different directions, now rejoined into one formation and dove towards the water below.

* * *

Ken lay mostly submerged in the water, only his large eyes visible on the surface, staring up at Zach. Suddenly he noticed the seven remaining Zach-Bots dive down towards him and realized that Zach must have spotted him. Cursing, he made to move, when suddenly he noticed something about the Zach-bots coming at him. Maybe it was just the angle he was observing from, but their formation reminded him of "Hopscotch" Ken breathed, before smiling and diving below the surface. Sinking down to the bottom of the water, he gathered his frog legs out from under him, and pushed off the ground as hard as he could

* * *

Zach's eyes widened as the water under him suddenly exploded and Ken erupted into the air, flying straight up at him. "GET THAT THING!" He screamed and his Zach-bots tightened their formation, raising their pincer-like arms. But Ken just smiled and shifted his angle slightly. He landed right on target, on the first Zach-bot's head, then before the robot could react, he jumped again, hopping from bot to bot, using the robots like a ladder. Seeing how close Ken was getting, Zach cried out and began moving his floating platform backwards, but Ken pushed extra hard off of the last robot and landed on the railing of Zach's platform, causing the whose apparatus to dip in the air.

"Aaah! Stay away from me!" Zach screamed, backing up to the very edge of the platform.

"Oh I don't think so" Ken growled, making his voice deeper so Zach couldn't recognize him. He stuck his super-long frog tongue out, missing Zach by an inch.

"Eeep!" Zach whimpered as Ken advanced towards him, then suddenly his fear seemed to evaporate from his face, replaced by a wicked grin.

_That can't be good!_ Ken thought to himself. As if confirming his fears, he suddenly heard a whirring noise behind him. Before he could turn around, Zach suddenly lashed out with the robotic appendages on his armor and Ken was thrown backwards off the platform, only to be caught in the vise-like claws of two Zach-bots who dangled Ken in between them like some kind of hunting trophy.

"Ah Ha Ha Ha!" Zach crowed. "Please, like I would actually be scared of a little slimy froggy like you!" He boasted. "Now your all 'hung up'!" Zach laughed at his joke.

"Laugh all you want to Zach" Ken growled. "The rest of the Krew will be here any minute!"

"Oh really?" Zach mocked. "I don't think so. But I'll tell you who _will_ be here shortly" With that he pulled out what looked like a cell phone, pressed a button, and held the device up to his ear. "Hey Baron? It's me. Yeah you were right, the Wild Krew _did_ have a new recruit. Two of them actually. Hmm? No, I took care of them. Yeah, they thought they could fight me off with falcon and frog powers! What? Well the bird girl is 'grounded' and the frog boy is...'hung up'! I know right! Ha Ha Ha Ha! So you'll be here in fie minutes? Excellent! I'll be waiting!" With that, Zach hung up and snapped his fingers, immediately the air behind him shimmered like a sheet of water and Zach's black plane uncloaked itself and the rear doors opened.

"Oh no" Ken muttered

"Oh yes!" Zach smirked. "Now come on little froggy!" Cackling again, he flew his mobile platform up to the hovering plane, followed by the pair of Zach-bots, which were holding Ken relentlessly despite his frantic attempts to escape.

* * *

"Oh no!" Jackie wailed from the ground, watching helplessly as Ken was taken prisoner. Frantically, she pressed the communication button on her helmet. "Allison! Zach's captured my brother!"

"_Oh no!"_ Allison gasped over the radio link

"What can we do?" Jackie pleaded. "I can't find another animal to touch!"

"_I've almost got the last of the Tellurium cloaked. Let me finish here and I'll join you up there"_ As if she could sense Jackie's despair, Allison added _"Don't worry Jackie, we WILL get your brother back"_

"But how?" Jackie asked herself as she sank to her knees. "And even if we get Ken back, we still have to find some way to make Zach leave. Too bad we can't just scare him away" Suddenly, Jackie felt something strange on her leg, like something was lightly pinching it. She glanced down, her eyes widened in amazement, then narrowed in wicked delight. "Or can we?"She considered, grinning wickedly.

* * *

**And Cut!**

**For those of you following this story, I apologize for the delay. I keep meaning to add onto it, but, as usual, there is always something on my computer to distract me! **

**For those of you who follow the Wild Kratts series, there is an episode in which Zach gets really freaked out and I plan to draw from that episode in the finale, mainly because it is one of my favorites of the series. Can anyone guess which episode I'm talking about? **

**As always, read and review! Let me know you guys are still out there!**

**Until Next Time!**


	23. Chapter 22

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(Been a while, hasn't it? Enjoy!)**

**Ch 22**

"You can't do this!" Ken shouted, throwing his webbed hands against the red-tinted force force field that imprisoned him, but the wall of light didn't break.

"Oh really?" Zach taunted from the other side of the wall. "And what are you going to do about it? Stick your tongue out at me?" Hooting with laughter, Zach turned his back on Ken and walked away.

"_Ken? Can you hear me? Are you okay?"_ Jackie's voice in Ken's ear made him jump, until he remembered the radio.

_"_Yeah, I'm okay, but I'm trapped in some kind of force field" Ken whispered. "Zach said that he's bringing guests over, and I have a pretty good idea who those guests are"

"_Don't worry Ken, I'll get you out of there"_ Jackie promised.

"No!" Ken hissed, turning towards the far wall. "He'll just catch you too!"

"_Relax, I've got a plan"_ Jackie sounded strangely calm.

"You do?" Ken's voice betrayed his surprise. Jackie wasn't the kind of person that planned things through. "Care to share what it is?"

"_I'd rather not"_ Jackie replied, and Ken could hear a giggle. "_Just enjoy the show"_

_"Ken, this is Allison"_ Another voice broke through on the radio. _"Are you still in your frog form?"_

"Yeah"

"_You should deactivate."_ Allison suggested. "_Frogs require moisture, and the implants follow that principle. If you dry up too much, you won't be able to move properly"_

"But Zach will see who I am" Ken argued. "And I'd rather he not know that."

"_You'll still have your helmet._" Allison reminded him. "_Besides, if Jackie's plan works, your identity should be the least of Zack's issues_."

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" Ken asked, sounding as unsure as he felt.

_"Yes. Just trust me"_ The firmness of Jackie's voice was surprisingly reassuring, so casting his doubts aside, Ken hit the deactivation button. There was a flash of grey light and Ken felt momentary discomfort as his limbs molded back into place. When the light cleared, he was again wearing dark-colored clothing,

"Tsk tsk tsk" Ken glanced up to see Zach looking down at him, no doubt drawn by the light of Ken's deactivation. The pale-skinned boy was shaking his head, looking disappointed. Clearly he had been hoping to see Ken's face. "Those helmets you guys wear, so annoying, and creepy-looking" Zach gave a little shiver as he walked away.

Ken smiled and patted his helmet gratefully. _At least Zach doesn't know who I am_. He thought as he scanned the laser cell he was in. The four red-tinted 'walls' were completely solid, nothing would be able to get through them, but what about the floor? Keeping an eye on Zach, Ken subtly began tapping the floor around him. No good, the floor sounded completely solid.

"Ah, here they come!" Ken froze at Zach's outcry and glanced up to where Zach was observing a screen, and felt sick to his stomach. The screen showed an image from outside, and in the center of it, a floating platform was getting closer and closer. On the platform, just visible, were three figures. Baron Wasteland, Ajay Torstyn, and his father. Ken gulped, and as if he had heard him, Zach turned around. "That's right my little froggy man. Once my friends get here, we're gonna dissect your little power vest like a frog in high school biology. Ah ha ha ha ha!" Zach howled with laughter and Ken shuddered.

* * *

"Are you sure about this?" Allison asked as she and Jackie threaded their way through the trees until they were right underneath Zach's hovering plane.

"Yes" Jackie assured her, glancing up at the black behemoth hovering overhead. Then her eyes caught movement and she pointed up "Look!"

Allison's eyes turned skyward and she watched a floating platform make its way towards the plane, escorted by Zach-Bots. "Who's that?"

"The 'visitors' Ken was referring to no doubt" Jackie huffed. She raised her creature pod to her ear. "Ken, can you see who's on the platform outside?"

"_Baron Wasteland and the Torstyns"_ Ken's reply made both of them gasp.

"Figures" Jackie exclaimed, rolling her eyes. "That's all we need now"

_"It's worse than you think"_ Ken continued. "_Zach says that they're gonna 'dissect my vest'_"

Allison stiffened in horror. "Oh no! The power vests are what allow you to access the implants! If Zach discovers how it works, he'll be able to craft the implants for himself! This is a disaster!"

"Not to mention what will happen to my brother in the process!" Jackie fought down the wave of panic rising in her chest and took a deep, calming breath. "Uh, what _will_ happen to my brother?" She asked Allison.

"Without the vest, the implants will become powerless, he won't be able to use them anymore." Allison explained grimly and Jackie's face paled.

"Then we've gotta do something now!" She resolved. Feeling a little prick on her thumb, she glanced down and smiled at her passenger."You're right, girl." She said, smiling at Allison. "Zach and his friends have been bugging us for too long. It's time we bug them back" She smiled at Allison, whose eyes widened as she saw what was sitting in Jackie's hand.

* * *

Ken's heart raced as he watched the floating platform enter the main area of Zach's plane and settle down on the dark gray floor. It's three passengers disembarked immediately.

"Welcome" Zach crooned, giving a small bow.

Baron Wastelands gaze swept over Zach and rested on Ken inside the force field. His face split in a sinister leer that made Ken shiver. "Well well, what do we have here?" He said, sweeping past Zach over to the laser cage.

"A member of the Wild Krew" Zach explained, looking annoyed at being overlooked. "My Zach Bots captured him as he was trying to keep us from the Tellurium."

"But I thought the members of the Wild Krew were out of the way" Ajay spoke up.

"So did I" Zach admitted "But it appears they've been recruiting new members"

"Members?" Mr. Torstyn repeated. "You mean there's more than one?"

"Oh don't worry" Zach grinned. "My Zach Bots took care of the other one"

"Then where _is_ the other one?" Baron Wasteland demanded, his smile fading.

"Oh she's down there somewhere" Zach said, trying to soothe his guests. He turned to the seven remaining Zach Bots. "Go find that falcon girl from before!" He ordered. The Zach-Bots beeped, and then zoomed out the open doors. "There, you see? If that other crew member is still down there, we'll find her"

"Perhaps" Baron Wasteland acknowledged as he turned back to the cage. "And in the meantime, we still have this one to play with" He added, his face smiling again.

"Ooh, this is gonna be good" Ajay snickered, rubbing his hands together like a greedy merchant.

Ken began backing away as the foursome approached his prison until he felt the sting of the lasers at his back. "Wh-what are you going to do?" He demanded

"Oh not much" Baron Wasteland replied, a cruel glint in his eye. "Let's just say we're going to perform a little 'experiment'"

"Like the frog in biology class" Mr. Torstyn chuckled, which lead to all of them laughing.

"Ironic really, considering he _was_ a frog when I caught him!" Zach laughed, his robotic mantis arms moving in and out as he laughed.

"Hey cool!" Ajay exclaimed as he noticed the arms moving. "Can I try those?"

For a moment, Zach looked like he was going to refuse, then shrugged and lifted a catch on the side, causing the robotic harness to slip off. "Knock yourself out" He said to a delighted Ajay who rushed to put the harness on.

"Cool!" He said, his eyes bright as he made the mantis arms lash out at the air in front of him. Facing Ken with a grin on his face, he lashed out with the arms. Ken expected the lasers to stop them, but the arms passed through the field easily and Ken had to duck to avoid getting hit by them. All the adults laughed as Ken lashed out again and again.

"Impressive" Mr Torstyn turned to Zach. "One way laser cage."

Zach nodded. "It lets things in, but not out" He boasted, laughing again as he watched Ken duck and weave to avoid Ajay's mantis arms.

Beneath his helmet, Ken's face paled, but he refused to let his captors see how scared he was. Putting on a brave tone, he countered. "Laugh all you want creeps, my friends will be here any moment now!"

"Oh, I highly doubt that" Baron Wasteland smirked.

As if on cue, the entire airplane suddenly shook violently, knocking everyone to the floor. Lights started flashing red and alarms began wailing. Baron Wasteland, Zach, Ajay, and Mr Torstyn were all knocked off their feet, sliding across the floor of the aircraft.

"What's going on?" Mr. Torstyn yelled over the alarms.

"I don't know!" Zach yelled back as he got to his feet. He dashed over to a computer terminal, but the plane lurched again, knocking Zach off his feet and sending him plowing headfirst into the side of the terminal. From his cage, Ken winced, that was going to hurt! Woozily, Zach propped himself up using his mantis arms and pressed a few keys. "Something hit us!" He announced to the others.

"Like what?" Baron Wasteland groaned, rubbing his head.

"I can't say for..."

"AAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!" Zach's reply was cut off by a piercing scream from Ajay, drawing all eyes towards the back of the plane. Ajay had been thrown the full length of the plane, almost to the rear-doors, which were still open. Now he screamed and scrambled away from them on his back, his face white as chalk.

"Ajay, what's the matter?" His father yelled, rushing to him. Ajay, his face white as a sheet, pointed a shaking finger out of the still-open rear doors of the plane. Puzzled, his father turned to look outside, and his eyes widened. "GOOD LORD!" He exclaimed and leapt backwards as a large shadow began to creep up the floor of the plane towards them. Zach screamed and even the Baron's face paled.

Ken gasped in amazement. Staring in at them through the doors of the plane, was an enormous preying mantis!

"SKKHHHHHHH!" The mantis screeched as it glared at them, mud colored eyes glowing softly in the moonlight. It raised its long saw-blade like arms over its head and screeched again. The moonlight gleamed off the sythe-like claws at the end of its arms.

"A MONSTER!" Ajay screamed.

"No, it's a giant preying mantis!" His father corrected

"A GIANT PREYING MANTIS!" Ajay screamed and Ken fought the urge to roll his eyes. Squinting up at the mantis, he spotted what appeared to by a faint glow in the creature's chest.

"Jackie" He whispered, smiling to himself.

"It must be the other Krew member from before" Zach growled. "ZACH BOTS!" He raised his voice. "GET HER!" Out of nowhere, the seven Zach Bots that had flown out the door reappeared in formation above Jackie, who slowly turned her gaze upward and screeched at them. The Zach Bots extended their Buzz Saw arms and dove, but the Jackie's arms lashed out like switchblades and cut through all seven Zach Bots at once. "OH NO!" Zach screamed as the she slowly turned back towards them.

"Don't just stand there Zach, get us out of here!" Baron Wasteland yelled. Zach pressed a button and the jet's engines roared to life. Ken felt the jet start to move, but there was sudden lurch and the jet stopped moving.

"AAH! SHE'S GOT US!" Zach screamed, glancing out the window. Ken could just see that one of Jackie's giant mantis arms had grabbed onto the jet's wing. Zach screamed for more power, but the jet wasn't going anywhere.

"SSSHHHKKKKKKK!" Jackie screeched as it began pulling the jet back.

"LET US GO!" Baron Wasteland yelled at Jackie.

"GO PICK ON SOMEONE YOUR OWN SIZE!" Mr. Torstyn added

Jackie screeched again and thrust her head forward until she was looking through the doors. Ken could feel his sister's gaze travel throughout the room, until he saw it rest on Ajay, who backed away nervously as he felt Jackie's gaze on her.

"Uhh, why is she looking at me like that?" He asked, glancing at his father, who shrugged his shoulders.

"Psst, Ken!" Ken glanced up to see a pair of eyes looking up at him from the shadows of the floor near the cage. A tiny head poked out of the shadows.

"Allison?" Ken whispered, raising an eyebrow. He watched as the Creature Corps head, who was now about the size of a fly, climb up onto the platform.

The girl nodded, then smirked as Ajay suddenly screamed again. Glancing up, Ken saw that Jackie was now snapping at Ajay with her mantis mouth, her mandibles clicking fiercely. "WHAT IS SHE DOING?" Ajay wailed.

"Yeah, what _is_ she doing?" Ken whispered to Allison, who was giggling.

"You know that girl preying mantis eat boy preying mantis, right?" Allison replied.

Ken's eyes widened beneath his helmet. "You mean she's going to...?"

"Eww, gross! Of course not!" Allison looked disgusted at the thought. Then she smiled again and added. "But _they_ don't know that"

Ken stared, then he smirked as he glanced up to see his sister still snapping furiously at Ajay.

"WHAT DOES SHE WANT WITH ME?!" Ajay wailed

"She wants to take a bite out of you, duh!" Ken yelled over at him.

"WHAT?!" Ajay turned to look at Ken, his face white. "WHY ME?"

Ken tossed his head in an annoyed gesture. "Because girl preying mantis eat boy preying mantis!" He said in a matter-of-fact tone. "And with those arms on, you kinda look like a boy mantis!"

Ajay glanced down at the robotic harness he was wearing and as Jackie lunged her head forward, he screamed. "AAHH! GET IT OFF! GET THIS THING OFF OF ME!" His hands began fumbling with the clasps that held it in place, but they were shaking so badly he couldn't remove it.

"But she's a human, not a mantis!" His father yelled at Ken, as he dashed over to help his son. "Why would she want to eat my son?"

Thinking quickly, Ken bluffed "Because the powers we use don't just allow us imitate animal forms and abilities, they can make us _think_ like the animal as well. Right now, my friend over there thinks she's a _real_ preying mantis"

"I'll say!" Allison whispered as Jackie managed to ram her head into the room in another effort to reach Ajay, who screamed and began scrabbling across the floor in an effort to get away.

"GET HER AWAY FROM ME!" He wailed as Jackie stretched her neck in an effort to reach him.

"NO! LET HER HAVE HIM! WHILE SHE'S EATING HIM, THE REST OF US CAN ESCAPE!" Zach yelled back

"YOU ARE _NOT_ FEEDING MY SON TO SOME OVERGROWN BUG!" Ajay's father bellowed as he wrestled with the catch that released the harness. Ken could see that the mechanism appeared to be stuck.

"IT'S HIM OR US!" Baron Wasteland yelled back.

"ACTUALLY!" Ken struggled to be heard over the now bickering foursome. "I DON'T THINK IT REALLY MATTERS WHO SHE GRABS, A MANTIS ISN'T EXACTLY PICKY ABOUT WHAT IT EATS!"

As if empathizing the point, Jackie let out another screech that filled the cabin of the plane and scraped against everyone's ears like nails on a chalkboard. Then the plane's nose suddenly began tilting upwards, and the whole plane began shaking back and forth violently.

"SHE'S TRYING TO SHAKE US OUT OF THE PLANE!" Baron Wasteland exclaimed.

"TELL HER TO STOP!" Zach whined.

_"_KNOCK IT OFF!" Mr. Torstyn bellowed at Jackie.

"DADDY, DO SOMETHING!" Ajay wailed, clutching his father, who was working desperately with the harness his son was wearing. With a audible 'Click', the robotic vest came loose, and Mr. Torstyn wrestled it over his son's head and, with a roar of fear or anger, he hurled it at Jackie. The vest hit Jackie between the eyes and she screeched.

"Oh, nice work dofus! Now you've ticked her o-a-o-a-off!" Ken yelled at Mr. Torstyn as Jackie screeched in anger and shook the plane even harder.

"LET US GO-O-O-O!" Zach sobbed, tears streaming down his face.

"Woah! Now I know what cereal feels like in the box!" Ken muttered to himself as he felt the cage around him jolt up and down, bouncing him back and forth.

A sudden crash drew everyone's gaze towards the front of the plane, where Baron Wasteland has just smashed a window. He had thrown off his black cloak and Ken could see a gleaming metal apparatus underneath it that resembled a jet-pack.

"Wait! What are you doing?" Mr, Torstyn yelled.

"What does it look like I'm doing, fool?!" the baron replied, easing his legs through the broken window. "There is no way I'm winding up inside that..._thing!"_

"But you can't just leave us!" Ajay cried out, now he was crying too.

"Watch me!" the baron, who was now completely outside the plane, yelled back before yanking a cord on his shoulder. The jet pack roared to life and the Baron shot away from the plane in a trail of smoke. Jackie screeched and reached up with one of her clawed arms to grab the baron, but he was already beyond her reach.

"Okay, I've seen enough" Allison muttered, glancing at her watch before carefully making her way along the cage to the laser control panel. Glancing up at Ken, she smiled at him and said "Ready for the finale?"

"Huh?" Ken glanced down at her. Allison reached out with her fingers and tapped the red button in the center of the control panel. There was a beep and the lasers suddenly disappeared. "WOOOAAAAHHHH!" Ken yelled as loud as he could as he suddenly found himself falling. Almost instinctively, he lunged for the edge of the cage and his fingertips caught it. As he hung over the edge of the now deactivated cage, he glanced down, and immediately wished he hadn't. His sister's head was now turning towards him, her jaw-like mandibles were open and Ken could swear there was a little bit of drool clinging to the mouthpieces. Her giant brown eyes seemed to bore into him and she screeched loud enough to make Ken's hair stand on end.

"Ken! Let go!" Ken felt a sensation on his arm and he saw Allison sliding down to land on his shoulder.

"What?" Ken gasped, certain he had misheard.

"Let Go!" Allison repeated. "Trust me!" Ken glanced at Allison, then down at Jackie, who was now snapping at him. Sure he knew his sister was probably acting, but that didn't stop the fear now flooding his mind, fear that was telling him to hold on for dear life. He glanced at Zach, who was not staring at him, his own face white as chalk as he clutched to a computer terminal. Nearby, Ajay was sobbing next to his father as they both clutched a nearby railing. _If this is an act..._ Ken thought as he glanced back at Allison, who smiled and nodded at him..._It's gone on long enough_. With that, he took a deep breath, and let go.

* * *

**And Cut!**

**Kinda disappointed by the lack of reviews so far, but that's probably because you're all waiting for me to continue. So I decided not to keep you waiting anymore. **

**It should now be obvious which Wild Kratts episode I'm referring to. For those of you who still haven't guessed yet, I'm not telling! ;) **

**I predict the ending in just two more chapters so stay with me, we're almost done! **

**Until next time! **


	24. Chapter 23

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(Question: How hard is it to write a chapter?**

**Answer: Somewhere between piece of cake to practically impossible)**

**Ch 23**

"AAAAHHHHHH!" Ken cried out at he fell through the air. He saw Ajay's eyes widen as they watched him plummet towards the open mouth of his sister. Ken shuddered as he heard Jackie screech beneath him and then winced as she felt his sister's mantis mandibles seize him out of the air. With her 'prey' secured in her mouth, Jackie began pulling her head out of the plane rear door. Ken pretended to write in pain inside Jackie's mouth, even though his sister was barely holding him at all, one hand scrabbling across the plane floor, as if seeking a handhold, while the other reached out desperately towards his captors, who were huddled together near the nose of the plane. "HELP MEEEEE!" He screamed as he was slowly dragged through the door. He caught a final glimpse of the wide eyed-look of horror on Ajay and his father's face, while Zach looked somewhat green. Seconds after Ken had passed through the door, he became aware of the sound of someone puking.

"Eww!" A tiny voice made Ken glance around to see minitaturized Allison hanging onto his shoulder with a disgusted look on her face. "That's just nasty"

Before Ken could comment, he felt Jackie's mouth open and found himself falling again, only to be grabbed by one of his sisters enormous mantis arms. He glanced up in time to see Jackie's head come down towards him, mouth wide open, and he screamed louder than ever.

SPLAT!

* * *

"Come on girl! Come on girl!" Jimmy Z stroked the control yolk as he eased it further and further forward. The turtle ship around him seemed to shudder and groan as it dove through the Earth's atmosphere. The boy winced as he saw small pieces of the outer skin blacken and flake off, floating past the eye-like view ports like charred confetti.

"JZ, don't you think you're going a bit too fast?" Martin called from behind him as the entire ship shook from the force of the entry.

"We've got to!" Aviva argued, gripping the armrests of her seat tightly. "We have to help Ken and Jackie!"

"Yeah, who knows what's happening to them right now?" Koki shifted in her seat, her nervous eyes glued to the view ports in front of them.

"We'll soon find out!" Jimmy called from the front. "ETA in 1 minute!"

"I still can't believe we sent those two children out into the field alone like that" Koki mused, kneading her hands together.

"Actually, _we_ didn't" Aviva corrected her, before turning to glance at Chris and Martin. "_They_ did"

"Hey, you agreed to it as well!" Chris argued back.

"Besides, you know we didn't have a choice!" Martin added, wincing as the ship shook like it had been slapped. "It was either that or let Zach get away with the Tellurium!"

"A pair of lives are worth more than a bunch of rocks!" Koki snapped back, which made both Kratt brothers gasp. "Even if they are Tellurium rocks" She mumbled.

"Did Koki just say what I think she just said?" Jimmy asked from the front

"Hey! Don't _you_ start!" Koki snapped at the pilot, who winced and quickly returned his eyes to the front.

"Hey, those kids are smart. They'll be fine!" Martin soothed, trying to diffuse the tension, a fact made somewhat difficult by the uncertain look on his face.

"Yeah, and they're not entirely alone, they've got Allison with them, and she has a miniaturizer, remember?" Chris reminded them, but he looked nervous as well.

"Yeah, but still, the kids have no idea how to use the implants! It took months of training before we could even field test our own implants!" Aviva shook her head, her black hair fanning behind her head. "I just hope nothing bad's happened to them!"

"I know what you mean Aviva. If anything's happened to those kids, I'll never forgive myself" Chris hung hi head.

"If anything's happened to those kids, I'll never forgive Zach" Martin growled. "_He's_ the reason we were forced to do this!" The control room of the ship was filled with dark mutters and growls of ascent as the ship descended though the cloud layer above the swamp.

"Uh, guys! Look!" Jimmy suddenly gasped as he pointed out the windows. The Krew turned as one to look, and four sets of jaws dropped almost simultaneously as the swampland came into view. Zach's plane was there, as they expected, what they were _not_ expecting was that the plane was currently being held in the saw-like arms of what looked like a giant preying mantis.

"Woah!" Chris and Martin exclaimed at the same time as they watched the giant mantis shake Zach's plane like a box of cereal, its head wedged inside the rear doors of the aircraft. "Where did _that_ come from?"

"Wait a minute" Koki raised her red-lined creature pod, which showed a glowing line on the screen. There was a few seconds, and the pod beeped. "I'm getting active readings from one of the kids implants, coming from that...thing!"

Aviva borrowed Martin's binoculars and trained them on the giant mantis. "I can see cream coloring. That must be Jackie" She commented aloud as she focused the lenses in front of her eyes.

"What is she doing?" Koki demanded, rising out of her seat, her dark were wide with amazement.

"Offhand, I'd say she's..._look!_" Aviva suddenly yelped as the giant mantis forcibly withdrew its head from the interior of the plane, and one of its arms released its hold on the plane, which made a sudden effort to get loose, but the mantis still had its other claw wrapped around the right wing of the plane. As they watched, the mantis lowered its head towards its now free left claw, which folded towards its mouth.

Martin leapt to his feet and grabbed the binoculars from Aviva and peered through them towards the unfolding scene before them. He gasped. "She's got someone in her claw!"

"Who?" His brother asked, also leaping to his feet.

Martin twirled the eyepieces of the binoculars, then groaned in annoyance. "I can't tell from here!" He replied as Jackie raised her giant mantis head, her mouth wide open.

"Uh you guys" Jimmy piped up from the front, his voice full of terror. "Is it just me, or does she look like she's about to...?"

Jimmy's were silenced by five screams as Jackie's head lunged forward and her mandibles bit down on the struggling figure caught in the crook of her mantis arm. Jackie wrenched her head sideways and shook her head the way a terrier shakes a rat.

"Did...did she just..._eat_ someone?" Koki gasped, looking horror-struck.

"I think so" Chris's eyes were as big as saucers.

"But...but why?" Aviva's face had turned pale. "There's nothing in the implant's programming that would make her do that!"

"I don't know, but...JZ LOOK OUT!" Martin cried out and pointed towards the windows. With Jackie's attention diverted on her 'meal', Zach's plane was able to take advantage of the distraction and managed to wrench itself out of Jackie's grip. Jackie screeched and lashed out with both of her mantis arms, dropping what was left of her 'meal' into the swampy water below but the plane was already too high up, and shot away from the overgrown insect like a comet, straight at _them!_

_"_Woah!" JZ swerved violently, knocking everyone off their feet, and the turtle ship shot to the left, missing the fleeing plane by inches.

"Wow! I don't think I've ever seen Zach move so fast" Aviva commented, a small smile playing on her face.

"Should be go after him?" Jimmy asked

"Forget Zach!" Koki shook her head. "Let's get down to the ground and find out what exactly those kids have done"

* * *

Ken held his breath as he plunged into the water with a big splash. Instead of swimming to the surface, he pressed a button on his helmet, which activated a breathing apparatus near where his mouth was, allowing him to stay underwater. He grabbed a nearby tree root, and hung on, waiting for Allison's signal.

Suddenly, the radio near his ear crackled on. "_Wild Krew, is that you up there?"_ He heard his sister ask. Ken glanced up through the dark water as a bright light suddenly shone down from the surface.

"_JACKIE! WHAT DID YOU JUST DO?!"_ Ken winced as Martin's voice echoed in his ears.

"_Ow! What are you yelling at me for?"_ Jackie whined before yelling back.

"_Why do you think? You just ate a person!_" Martin exclaimed. Ken smirked, apparently Jackie's plan had worked.

_"No I didn't"_ Jackie argued back.

_"Yes you did! We all saw you!"_ Chris's voice crackled on and he sounded mad

Ken chuckled as he pressed into the conversation. "Good! If that's what you saw, then that's what Zach and his friends saw"

_"Ken? Are you okay?_" Allison's voice now crackled through in response.

"Fine, considering I was almost mantis food"

"_Not helping Ken!_" Jackie growled through the radio. Ken felt the water suddenly churn and a dark shape thudded down a few feet away from him, a giant mantis leg.

"Yikes!" Ken leapt off his root and swam up to the surface. Breaking through, he yelled up at his sister. "Hey watch it! You almost stepped on me!"

"Oh I'm _so sorry!_" Jackie replied, glancing down at him, not sounding very sorry at all. Maybe it was due to her massive size, but her voice was loud and booming and seemed to echo from the surrounding trees. Jackie must have noticed it too, because she tilted her head and seemed to be listening to the echo. "Yes! How's that for girl power?!" She cheered and suddenly there seemed to be ten of her yelling in Ken's ears. Jackie flashed her giant mantis arms, the saw-like edges gleaming in the moonlight.

"Oh good grief!" Ken moaned, throwing his hands over his ears. "Like it's bad enough that you scared me practically to death with this insane plan of yours, but now you have to rub it in my face!"

"But you make it so easy, and my plan was _not_ insane!" Jackie countered, her giant glowing eyes glaring down at him. Ken fought the urge to wince.

"Cool it you two!" There was a bright flash of light and Allison appeared next to Jackie, seemingly from out of nowhere, then Ken noticed she was standing on a large circular platform. "Jackie, you can change back now"

"Aw, do I have to?" Jackie whined. "This feels great!" She lashed out at the air with her arms again, as if trying to prove her point.

"Jackie, change back now!" Allison ordered, her voice firm.

"Okay! Okay!" Jackie sighed and tapped her chest with one of her claws. Cream-colored light spilled out from her chest, covering her in a halo that began to shrink her down. In a few seconds, she was normal again. She stepped out of the muck, stretching her arms as she did so. "Ah, that was invigorating!"

"I'll bet" Ken huffed as he joined them. "You could have warned me you were gonna act like a man-eating mantis!"

"Hey, If my plan was going to work, I only had one shot at it" Jackie replied matter-of-factly. "Besides, you were the one who made them think I was man-eating. I was just gonna shake them up until they got tired of it and left."

Before Ken could reply, the group was buffeted by a small windstorm that signaled the descent of the turtle-shaped craft. It touched down near them with a thump, its 'mouth' opened, and the members of the Wild Krew came spilling out.

"Would _someone_ like to tell us what the heck is going on here?" Koki demanded, as soon as they were within earshot.

"Oh, we just scared Zach and his friends away from the swamp before he could nab any of the tellurium" Jackie boasted, looking very pleased with herself.

"Yeah, judging from what I could see, those guys won't be back anytime soon" Ken added, smiling widely as he shook loose plant matter off his soggy clothing.

The members of the Krew glanced at each other, confusion mirrored on all their faces. "Maybe you'd better start at the beginning" Chris suggested.

"Sure, but can I get out of these wet clothes first?" Ken suddenly shivered, which caused the other crew members to crack smiles.

"Follow me" Martin beckoned, leading the way to the turtle ship.

* * *

Once the Krew members were all inside the main room of the ship, Jackie and Allison explained what had happened while Ken changed into a gray-lined jumpsuit behind a screen.

"So, you were only pretending to eat your brother?" Aviva broke the silence

"Duh, of course I was just pretending!" Jackie giggled, placing a hand on Ken's shoulder. "I'd never really eat Ken. He'd taste disgusting!" She burst out laughing.

"Ha ha! Very funny!" Ken snorted as he came out from behind the screen, but he was smiling as well.

"Cool jumpsuit Ken" Allison commented.

"Wow! It looks just like the ones the Krew wear!" Jackie added. Ken saw that it was indeed similar to the ones that the Krew members were wearing, except that it was gray in places where the other suits were colored. "Lucky you!" Jackie pouted. "I wish I had a suit like that!"

The Krew members exchanged smiles. "You do" Aviva finally said. "It's back there" She pointed to the screen.

"Sweet!" Jackie squealed and dashed behind the screen, to the amusement of her brother.

"I gotta admit, that was pretty clever, psyching Zach out like that." Martin chuckled. "He already hates animals, I wonder if he'll be scared of them now"

"I hope so" Chris snorted, "Maybe then he'll leave them alone"

"I wouldn't count on it" Aviva objected, leaning forward in her chair. "Zach's not the kind of person who is governed by fear, in fact you might say being afraid of something only makes him hate it even more."

Ken frowned as he considered this. Seeing it, JZ reached over and patted him on the shoulder. "Whatever happens with Zach, it's a problem for another time. You guys did great for your first mission"

"I'll say!" Martin chuckled. "Playing hopscotch on the Zach Bots! I wish I could have seen that!"

"And Jackie sounds like she's a natural with falcon powers" Chris added.

"What about the Tellurium?" Ken asked. "What if Zach or Baron Wasteland comes back? We can't just stay here forever to protect it"

"We won't have to" Aviva grinned and pressed a key, a video of the recording that Jackie's flybot cam had taken at the Animal Junction appeared on the screen. "We already transmitted a video of this to the police. This should get them really interested in our four friends."

"Especially Baron Wasteland's confession about the toxins." Chris added. "That should get him in major trouble."

"I'll say" Jackie exclaimed as she came out from behind the screen wearing her new jumpsuit with cream outlines. "I really hope that they get arrested."

Martin scoffed. "Even if they somehow weasel their way out of this, the jamming devices that Allison dropped will mask the Tellurium energy signal from their scanners. Unless they know what frequency to look for, they'll never find the Tellurium."

"Not only did the two of you save an entire habitat from being destroyed" Koki smiled at Ken. "But you were also albe to secure enough Tellurium to power our operation for a long time to come." She glanced at the other members of the Krew before adding "We can't thank you enough for what you did" The rest of the Krew nodded. Jackie blushed while Ken glanced at the floor, both were clearly embarrassed.

"Okay, so now that we've saved the swampland and secured the Tellurium, I'd say our next course of action should be... "Chris broke off as a green light above the main monitor suddenly began flashing on and off. For some reason, every member of the Krew stopped what they were doing and stared up at the light.

"The council's calling?" Jimmy raised an eyebrow

"But it's not time for the report yet" Koki glanced at the time displayed on one of the smaller monitors. "Why are they calling now?"

"Dunno, but I'll go see what they want" Aviva darted through a door before anyone else could say anything. A few seconds later the light stopped flashing and turned red.

"Uh, who is the 'council?" Jackie asked, looking nervously from face to face.

Chris, Martin, Koki, and JZ exchanged a glance. Then Chris nodded at the others and spoke. "Remember when we told you about the Zobooans, the alien race that gave us the technology we use?" Jackie and Ken nodded. "Well, what we didn't tell you is that the Zobooans are practically extinct"

"What?" Jackie gasped.

"Why?" Ken raised an eyebrow.

"We're not sure" Martin shrugged his shoulders. "But from what we've gathered, some kind of epidemic wiped out almost all life on the planet Zoboomafoo, save a single member of each sentient species that lived there."

"Right now, they're in the process of rebuilding their homeworld, and they..." Koki was cut off when Aviva suddenly came back into the room, her face pale.

"Aviva, what's wrong?" Chris asked the question on everyone's mind

"Does the Council want to see us?" Martin probed

Aviva slowly shook her head. "They want to see..._them"_ She raised a shaking hand, and pointed it at Ken and Jackie, who glanced at each other nervously.

* * *

**And Cut!**

**I thought I would never get this particular chapter done! I have been working on it for months, but the motivation has been extremely evasive! And I mean that quite literally! **

**Oh well, it's done now, and with it, the Wild Krew Story begins to draw to a close. In the final chapter, we shall meet the mysterious Zobooan Council and for Jackie and Ken, the surprises are far from over! So Stay tuned! **

**Until Next Time!**


	25. Chapter 24

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(After much deliberation...****)**

**Ch 24**

"The council wants to see..._us?"_ Ken repeated, pointing at himself. Aviva nodded.

"I'm...not so sure I want to meet this...council" Jackie said warily, glancing hopefully at each of the crew members, as if waiting for one of them to say 'Sure, no problem', but no one did. All she saw were stern and serious expressions.

"Sorry, but when the council calls, you have to respond" Koki replied.

"Yeah, trust me. You do _not_ want to keep these guys waiting" Jimmy added, shaking as he spoke.

"Don't worry though" Martin patted Jackie on the shoulder. "We'll go with you and..." Martin stopped talking when he noticed Aviva shaking her head.

"Sorry guys, but the council wants to talk with them alone" She reported.

"Oooh" Both Kratt brothers winced.

"Follow me" Aviva motioned to Ken and Jackie. She led them out of the main room and down one of the hallways.

"So, this council, do they know about us?" Ken asked. When Aviva didn't answer, Ken added "I mean, about Jackie and Me"

"Yes" Aviva said, spinning around suddenly to face them. "They know" The frown on her face deepened as she spoke. "And they didn't sound too happy about it"

Ken and Jackie exchanged a nervous glance as Aviva turned and lead them further down the hallway and around a corner. They eventually came to a stop outside a blue door with a large green light above it, the light was flashing on and off. "Okay, now listen" Aviva turned to face them, placing one hand on the door. "Inside here, you will each find a white orb about this size" She held her hands apart to show them. "Go straight to the orbs and place both hands on either side of them. Do not do anything else, do not say anything unless you are spoken to. Understand?"

Jackie's eyes widened. "Um.. could you...?"

"Understand?!" Aviva barked, her eyes flashing, and both siblings nodded. "Good" Aviva punched a button beside the door and it slowly hissed open, revealing a bare white room beyond. "Good luck"

"Wait, you're not coming in with us?" Ken asked.

Aviva shook her head. "They want to see just the two of you, now get going!" Keeping one hand on the button, she reached out and, once by one, grabbed their shoulders and literally tossed them forwards through the door, which instantly slid shut after they had gone through.

"Hey!" Jackie exclaimed, spinning to face the door, only to see a blank wall behind them. "Where'd the door go?"

"I dunno, but look" Ken pointed at two basketball-sized orbs that were rising out of the floor of the room. For a moment, the siblings just stood there, watching the orbs rise to about chest height. After a few seconds, they gazed around at the stark white walls of the room.

"Well, should we?" Jackie asked finally.

"Might as well" Ken sighed, approaching the orb on the right, while Jackie cautiously stepped up to the orb on the left. "On three?" He suggested, raising his hands. Jackie nodded, biting her lip, meaning she was really scared, as she reached for her orb. Ken nodded at her, he could feel butterflies in his stomach. "One, two, three!" Ken and Jackie placed their hands on the orbs, which felt smooth and cold. The second they did so, the orbs lit up and Ken and Jackie both felt something rush through their heads. It didn't hurt, it felt like a warm breeze.

Slowly, the white walls of the room faded away, being replaced by an alien-looking landscape with blue grass, tall twisted trees and plants that looked like tentacles. As the pair glanced around, they saw other strange sights, like rocks shaped like turtles and bushes that looked like coral. "Wh-where are we?" Jackie asked.

"I-have no idea" Ken exclaimed, taking his hands off the orb, which disappeared as soon as he let go. After a few seconds, Jackie did the same. 'But if I had to guess..." Ken added. "I'd say we're on Zomboomafoo"

"Huh?" Jackie glanced at him

"Remember? The planet that the Kratt Bros said the Council was from?" Ken reminded her.

"Oh yeah" Jackie nodded, then glanced around again. "But...how'd we get here? Aren't we still inside the big turtle ship?"

"I'll bet we aren't 'here' at all" Ken replied. "I'll bet this is all in our heads"

As if challenging that statement, a cool breeze suddenly flowed past them, so cold it made both of them shiver. "It feels pretty real to me" Jackie commented.

"That's because it _is_ real" Both siblings flinched as a deep voice suddenly growled behind them. "Just because something happens in your head, does not mean it is not real" As the voice spoke, a large silhouette seemed to cover both of the siblings, who slowly turned to look up. Their jaws dropped. Standing over them was a creature that could only be described as a saber-toothed dinosaur. Standing on two large legs, its body was covered in midnight-blue scales with golden colored scales lining its chest and the base of its neck. Long arms, also blue, were curled underneath the body, and they could just make out long, curved claws attached to the ends of long fingers.

As the creature took a step forwards, Ken could see a long blue tail, striped with gold, lash the vegetation behind it. The dinosaur bent down to look closer at them, the siblings got a really up-close look at its mouth, with a large raptor-like jaw with large saber teeth poking down from the bottom lip, and a large spike jutting from the tip of its nose. The dinosaur stared at them with jet-black eyes located underneath what Jackie thought were two blue horns, until they both suddenly swerved towards them, revealing they were ears.

"Well?" The dinosaur barked, making both siblings jump. "Anything you wanna say to me? Like maybe, your names?"

Ken recovered first. "Um...I'm Ken Kalix, and this is my younger sister Jackie" Jackie waved shyly at the creature. "Wh-who are you?" Ken continued, shifting uneasily under the creature's gaze.

"And for that matter..." Jackie paused as the creature swung its head to look at her. "Wh-_what_ are you?"

The creature stared at them for a few seconds and then it emitted a noise that, to their amazement, resembled a chuckle. "Direct and to the point, I like that" The corners of its large mouth seemed to curl up in a smile, though it did nothing to dissuade how ferocious he looked. "My name is Ttark, and I am a Zoboomafooasaurus"

"Ah, I see" Ken gave what he hoped was a reassuring smile back up at Ttark. "Then this _is_ Zoboomafoo"

"Yes" Ttark growled, turning his massive head to gaze out over the strange landscape. "But it did not always look like this"

"What do you mean?" Jackie asked, and Ttark swung his head back to look at them.

"Did the Kratt brothers tell you about what happened to this land?" He asked, narrowing his eyes as he spoke

"Um, kinda" Jackie answered awkwardly.

"Sort of" Ken added, scratching his head. "But they weren't very clear on the details"

Ttark seemed to sigh. "No, I suppose they would not be" As he spoke, his reptilian eyes seemed to glaze over, like he was remembering something from long ago. "To make a long story short, our planet was once home to multitudes of races, including several sentient ones, such as mine. However, despite having evolved side by side with each other, we did not interact. Our races were isolated, we kept to ourselves, and often times, we argued with other races, not just over basic materials like food or water, but over trivial things as well. Eventually, the arguments became violent, race attacked race, and our planet was on the verge of civil war."

"It wassss teeeerrririibllleeee!" A high-pitched moaning made both siblings spin around to find what appeared to be a large bipedal yellow salamander, with blue stripes on its chest and googly eyes perched on top of its slimy head, staring at them. Its three 'fingers' wiggled by its sides and a long tongue draped down from one side of its mouth. "Nooooo one waaanted to make frieeeends with usssssss!" As the creature spoke, Ken and Jackie were shocked to see what appeared to be tears streaming down the sides of the creature's snout.

"Indeed, Slimantha" Ttark nodded in the direction of the bidepal gecko.

"Do we really have to talk about this?" Another voice rang out as a third creature stepped into the clearing, it was tall and looked like a golem with deep purple skin and a lighter purple stomach. Two large ears stuck out like little horns from its head and its mouth was enormous, stretching from one side of the face to the other. Flanking it were two other creatures that gazed at the siblings with curiosity. One of them looked like a bipedal elephant with blue skin and mitten-like hands. An orange spot lay on its chest and three orange 'feelers' rose up from its head to form some king of crest. On the other side of the purple creature was what appeared to be a large dog that was as tall as Ken was, light green in coloration with darker-green splotches. "I'ma gonna loose my appetite" The purple creature added, clutching its stomach.

"And ya know what Gooble gets like when his appetite goes missing" The elephant creature snorted through its trunk. Examining Ken and Jackie carefully, it added. "Who are these two? They don't look familiar"

"Yeh heh, smell different, heh heh, never met before" The green dog at his side panted in agreement.

"These two children are 'apparently' the newest recruits of the Wild Krew, Narchie" Ttark explained, putting emphasis on the 'eventually'. "Remember, Aviva told us this last time we spoke with her"

"Oh yeah" Narchie trunk curled up to scratch the top of his head. "She did say somethin' like that, didn't she?"

"Yeah, yeah she did, yeah" The green dog sat back on its haunches and blinked at the siblings.

"But she didn't say they would be so little" Gooble wheezed, tilting forward to get a better look at the two siblings. "I didn't know there were humans that looked like that"

"Pups, not full grown yet" The green dog huffed, shaking itself vigorously.

"Oh" Gooble stared for a moment, then nodded. "Uh huh, that makes more sense"

"Jee, ya think" Narchie grumbled as he leaned forward, his trunk stretching towards Jackie, who backed uneasily away.

"Wh-what are you doing?" She whimpered.

"It's just how Narchie says hello" Gooble explained, rolling his large eyes like it was obvious.

"Ahem" Ttark rumbled, trying to get everyone's attention. "As I was saying, our planet was on the verge of civil war, but before that occurred, something else happened. Ttark paused and the assembled creatures all shifted uneasily.

"Well? What happened?" Ken asked.

"Ya ha! A better question would be, what _didn't_ happen? Ya ha ha!" A loud voice answered, making Ken jump. The voice came from a creature with midnight blue fur, large eyes, enormous yellow ears and long spindly fingers. The creature jumped up and down as it spoke.

Next to it, what looked like a large lemur with ice-blue-and-white fur shook its head sadly. "A great series of natural disasters, yah yah. Giant storms, wildfires, flooding, earthquakes, everything yah" It huffed, gesturing with hands covered in white fur.

"That terrible!" Jackie exclaimed, her hands rising to cover her mouth.

"It _was_ a terrible time" Ttark snorted in agreement. "These natural disasters were triggered by the weapons we developed to destroy each other. But by the time we realized this, it was too late. The disasters wiped out nearly all life on Zoboomafoo." Ttark gestured to the strange creatures that now surrounded the siblings. "We are all that remains"

Ken and Jackie looked around at the circle of beings. In addition to Ttark and the creatures that had spoken, they had also been joined by a colorful-looking bird with tiny wings, an egg-shaped body and a tiny head mounted on a long neck, a mole-like creature whose head resembled a large drill, and a large bug-like creature with long legs, large feet, and a head that resembled an asparagus.

"GGRUBLE!" Hearing a strange noise coming from a nearby pond, the siblings turned and the creatures parted to reveal another creature gazing up at them from the water. It had a fish-like body with eyes on stalks, and what appeared to be an octopus tentacle and a crab-like pincer had lay above the surface of the water, but Ken had a sneaking suspicion that there was more to this creature than they were seeing.

"What was that, Fibby?" Ttark swung his large head towards the water creature.

"_Burg!_ What are we going to do about these new humans?" The creature replied in a watery voice.

"A good question" Ttark replied, his tone suddenly getting meaner and his eyes narrowed as he lowered his head to gaze at them. "What _shall_ we do with them?"

Jackie whimpered and hid behind her brother. Ken opened his mouth to respond, but before he could say anything, he felt a sudden flare of heat erupt from his hands and he glanced down to see that his fingertips were glowing.

"Rnenenene. Look, they have the Creature Power Implants! Rnenenenene!" The drill-headed mole exclaimed, rolling his R's in a way that sounded like a motorcycle.

"But we didn't give them any" The large insect growled, and his clawed feet tore up the ground under him as he pawed angrily. "At least I know that _I_ didn't"

"Woooah! Stolen! Stolen! Stolen! Woooah!" The egg-bird screeched, its tiny wings a blur as it rose above the group. The gap it made was quickly filled by the others, who were now all glaring at the siblings with hostility in their eyes.

"No! that's not true! We didn't steal anything!" Jackie argued

"Jackie's right, the members of the Wild Krew gave us these implants!" Ken added.

At the mention of Wild Krew, the creatures seemed to freeze and glance at each other. Tense whispering broke out around the circle.

"Even if that's true, it changes nothing!" The insect snarled, stepping forwards with its front claws clinking together. "They had no right to give you the same powers we gave them"

"Hey, we've done a lot of good with these 'powers'" Jackie snapped, though quickly darted behind Ken again when the insect growled back at her.

"Hold on Buggly" Ttark growled before turning back to the siblings. "Exactly what _kind_ of good have you used these powers for?"

"To help protect our environment" Ken answered.

"Oh?" Ttark tilted his head sideways. "You care about your planet, do you?"

"Of course we do!" Jackie snapped. "We'e always cared about the Earth. It's our home and we'll always help protect it!"

"Many of your species, would disagree with you, Rnenenene" The drill-headed mole argued.

"Noggendrill's right, man" Buggly snarled leaning his thin face down towards them. "We've seen what your kind are like, always taking advantage of yer Earth, chewing up resources faster than yer planet can reproduce em, stinkin up yer air, pollutin yer water, most humans don't give a thought towards protectin' their planet"

Ken snorted. "You're one to talk, buster" He snapped back, to a chorus of gasps, followed by angry exclamations.

"Ken!" Jackie gasped, but Ken gestured for his sister to be quiet.

"You just told me, that my people, Humans, care nothing for our planet? That's pretty rich coming from the sole survivors of s series of disasters started by a world war among st your kinds!"

"The disasters that wiped out our world out were not started by us!" Ttark growled.

"Maybe not directly, but you must have been involved somehow, even if you don't see it. If your technology is sufficient enough to channel the power of Earth's animal kingdom, then surely it must have been advanced enough to create weapons and other industrial devices, whose creation must have impacted your environment in some way."

"Ken's right" Jackie took a step forward, a determined look on her face. "Right now on our world, our consumption of resources has increased the temperature of our climate to the point where the polar ice caps are melting, which means that there is more liquid water in our oceans, which means that storms like hurricanes and typhoons are far stronger than before, which will lead to more death and destruction. But now that we know this for a fact, we humans are taking steps to try to cut back on emissions, give our climate a chance to stabilize. Did you guys ever stop to consider that the arguments between your species may have lead to the disasters that crippled Zoboomafoo?"

The angry growling that had filled the air before had been snuffed out as the Zobooans glanced at each other. A few of them shifted uneasily and Ken saw that many of them now refused to meet his gaze.

"Well said" Ttark finally broke the silence. "We had never thought of it in that way before." He glanced around at the rest of the Zobooans, who nodded ascent. "I wonder why the rest of the Krew never mentioned that in any of their reports"

"Reports?" Ken repeated, glancing up at Ttark.

"Every so often, we have each member of the Wild Krew give us a report about a certain species or about a certain habitat." Ttark explained

"We use these reports to see how the creatures of earth get along, yah" The white lemur added

"But why would you want to know that?" Jackie asked

"So that when we finish rebuilding our world, we can make sure the same disasters cannot happen again" Narchie answered, shifting in the circle and gesturing with his trunk to the bizarre-looking plants behind him. "After the disasters, Zoboomafoo was a complete wasteland. As you can see, we've made lots of progress already."

"You did all that?" Ken gasped.

"Well, we do have 'advanced technology'" Narchie smiled smugly.

"Buuut iiiittt's nooot enooouuugh!" Slimantha moaned, which wiped the smile from Narchie's face. "All we haaaave are plaaantssssss. Nooooothing elssssse!" The gecko drooped her head, looking miserable.

"And at this rate, we'll never be able to rebuild our world" Buggly growled, his claws snapping, but his head was also drooped.

Ken stared at the Zobooans. A few minutes ago, they had looked ferocious, like wild animals, but now all the spark seemed t have gone out of them and they looked defeated. _Poor guys! It's gotta be tough seeing your home planet reduces to rubble, if only there was some way I could help them. Wait a minute!_ Ken stiffened as an idea popped into his head _Maybe I can!_ He glanced at Jackie and saw that her eyes were wide and she was smilng, she glanced over at him and nodded.

"Um, maybe we can help you" Ken siad, stepping forward.

"The zobooans lifted their heads as one to gaze at him. "What? How can you help us? Rnenenene" The drill-headed mole demanded.

"Right now in school, we're learning about the concepts of evolution and selection of genetic traits in regards to the environment." Ken explained. "We can teach you want we've learned."

"Uh, what's evolution?" Gooble asked

"It's the idea that, over time, one species can turn into another" Jackie explained. "And this process is responsible for all the genetic diversity that we have on our planet. Every animal was shaped by evolution, as were the powers all these animals have"

"Hmmm" Ttark looked thoughtful. "You would do that for us?"

"Yes we would" Ken nodded, then paused as another thought came to him "On one condition"

An explosion of groans and snarls erupted around them, but Ken ignored them. Ttark narrowed his eyes. "And what is this condition?"

"Jackie and I, we would like to keep these" He held up his hands to show his glowing fingertips. "You gave the Wild Krew members these implants so they could help protect Earth, and we want to do the same with our implants"

Ttark snorted. "Techically we gave them to the Krew so they could learn more about Earth's creatures and ecosystems to provide us with more information about their world"

"And we gave them to the Krew because they proved they were worthy to have them!" The blue-skinned large-eared creature piped up, literally hopping up and down as he spoke.

"Correct, Sensitt." Ttark acknowledged the creature with a nod. Turning back to Ken and Jackie, he asked. "How do you plan to prove your worth?"

"You gave the implants to the Krew because they were worthy, and they gave us the implants for the same reason" Jackie answered. "Ask them if you don't believe us"

"All right, we will" Ttark turned his head towards the nearby pond. Ken noticed that Fibby hurriedly darted to the side as Ttark opened his mouth and gae a humongous roar that caused both siblings to clap their hands over their ears. Ken saw the water in the pond ripple as if something has been dropped into it. They waited, and they waited, but nothing happened.

"They must be out of range" Narchie huffed.

"BBBRRGHHH _Alll of them?"_ Fibby spluttered in her watery voice.

"What now?" Buggly asked, glancing around.

"Allow me to suggest an alternative." A new voice made everyone glance up to see what looked like a large pale-green squid floating in the sky above them. A large eye the size of a basketball blinked steadily down at them.

Ttark lifted its head to gaze up a the squid. "And where have you been, Cy?" He huffed.

"Tending to the gardens Ttark" The squid replied, its tentacles waving lazily as it slowly floated down towards them ."The cacti spores the Kratt Brothers sent over are flourishing wonderfully in the southern desert"

"And what do you propose we do about this?" Buggly gestured to the siblings.

For a moment, Cy didn't reply, he just glanced down at them with his single eye. Ken fought the urge to shudder, he felt like the squid was looking right through him. "I propose...that we do the same thing we did when the Krew first appeared to us" He said finally.

"What did...? Oh yeah" The insect's mouth curled into something resembling a smile. "I'd forgotten your kind could read minds"

"But can you read their minds, Cy?" Ttark asked, looking uncertain.

"If I can read the minds of the Wild Krew members, which are fully grown, I'm sure I can read the minds of two juveniles" Cy responded, shifting positions so that it was eye-to-eye with Ttark.

"Read our minds?" Jackie repeated with wide eyes. "Y-you can do that?"

"Of course" Cy tuned to face them, his one eye staring at them unblinking. "If you are willing."

Ken and Jackie glanced at each other for a long moment, then Ken glanced up and nodded. "Sure, I have nothing to hide."

"Me neither" Jackie quickly added, but looked nervous.

"Then we begin" Cy floated down until he as just a few inches above them and extended two of his tentacles, which wrapped around the sibling's craniums. Ken fought the urge to shudder as he felt cold suction cups latch onto his forehead. His mind was instantly filled with a strange sort of buzzing, like a swarm of bees was loose inside his head. Her dimply heard Jackie whimper in fear and his hand found hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze. She squeezed back and Ken tried to turn his head to look at her, but the tentacle wrapped around him prevented him from moving so he just sat there.

Suddenly Ken's eyes were filled with a bright white haze and and he felt a strange presence, like something was literally moving around _inside_ his head. The buzzing noise became louder and Ken could see scenes from the past few days flash before his eyes at a dizzying pace, starting from when he and Jackie had been accepted by the Creature Corps, and how they had learned about the Wild Krew through them. He was forced to recall how they had avoided the Crew in wolf form at the Animal Junction restaurant and could dimly see how Jackie had avoided them in rattlesnake form at the school greenhouses. His stream of visions continued up to when they were ambushed by the Krew members in the swamp and taken to their secret flying ship where they were grafted with the implants. At this point, Ken felt a dark impulse, like a dark cloud was slowly filling his mind with hate, but as the visions continued, showing how Ken and Jackie had used the implants, resulting in their recent swamp battle against Zach and his 'friends'. the negative feelings seemed to lift away.

"It is done" A voice boomed in his mind and Ken suddenly fell to the ground as the tentacles holding him detached themselves and his feet gave out from under him. A muffled thump told him that Jackie had fallen as well. Cy floated upwards above them, slowly rotating so that he was facing all the surrounding creatures in turn. "While it is true that the Wild Krew gave these children Zobooan implant without consulting us, it is also true that these children have used the implants only to help their planet, and with great wisdom and restraint since they received them." As Ken struggled to clear the remnant buzzing that still echoes in his mind, he could see a flash of light above them and amused expressions from the other Zobooans. Slowly, and painfully, lifting his head upwards, he saw that Cy was projecting some sort of screen from his eye, showing the scene where they had been inducted into the Wild Krew. Ken felt a smile cross his face as he recalled the Kratt Brother's words about him and Jackie. "Based on what I have seen, I say that they be allowed to retain the implants given to them.

"I agree." Ttark rumbled as he turned to glance over the assembled "But the decision must be unanimous".

Ken and Jackie waited with baited breath as Ttark addressed each of the assembled. "Narchie?" The blue elephant stared at them for a second, then nodded its head.

"Slimantha?" The yellow salamander immediately nodded eagerly.

"Sensitt?" The blue creature nodded, his giant ears flopping up and down as it did so

"Gooble?" The purple creature swayed back and forth, looking like it hadn't heard Ttark, but eventually it nodded.

"Noggendrill?" The drill-headed mole looked thoughtful for a moment, then it too nodded

"Grasshound?" The green dog wagged its tail as it bounded up to Jackie and jumped up, licking her in the face.

"Hey, stop it!" Jackie giggled, as her face was covered in slobber, Ken chuckled at the sight.

"I'll take that as a yes" Ttark seemed amused as well, before turning to the next member of the Council. "Snowfaka?" He addressed the blue-and-white lemur, who seemed to take a really long time to visually look over both of them before nodding.

"Wiggy Waxwing?" Ttark lifted his head up towards the bird, which was still hovering over them. The bird cocked its head both ways as if studying the siblings closely, before dipping its head in what looked like a nod.

"Fibby?" Ttark turned to the pond, where the water creature had surfaced again. The creature waved both its claw and tentacle and Ttark nodded at it.

"Buggly?" The large insect growled and Ken felt his spirits fade a little. He got a sense this insect did not like them, and if the vote was unanimous, he could undo it. Squashing down his rising fears, Ken lifted his gaze to meet Buggly's, looking the giant insect right in the eyes. After what seemed like hours, the insect snorted and, to their amazement, nodded his head.

"Then it is decided! Ken and Jackie Kailix keep their abilities!" Ttark's voice boomed out over the clearing. He dipped his head to Ken and Jackie and said, in a quieter voice. "Go tell the rest of the Wild Krew that we accept its newest members"

Ken and Jackie could not stop the wide smiles that lit up their faces and Ttark seemed to chuckle as though amused by their reactions. As the other Zobooans began to disperse in different directions, he leaned closer and added in a low whisper. "I look forward to hearing your first report. Expect a message from one of us soon" Before Ken or Jackie could respond, Ttark drew himself up to his full height, turned and stomped away, the ground shaking beneath his feet as he walked.

"Thank you!" Jackie called at Tark's blue tail disappeared through the trees. Suddenly, the landscape around them began to fizzle and fade, the trees, the pond, and the sandy green-and-blue ground slowly gave way to white walls, floor, and ceiling. They were back in the white room on the ship. The door in the wall, slowly hissed open.

"That just happened, right?" Jackie glanced at Ken as they made their way to the door.

"I think so" Ken said, then smiled. "Pretty wild, huh?"

Jackie giggled and playfully punched her brother in the shoulder as they headed out the door and made their way back up to the main room of the ship.

* * *

**And Cut!**

**All's well, that ends well, BUT THIS STORY ISN'T OVER YET! There's an epilogue coming up soon, so stay tuned!**

**FYI: For those who noticed, Grasshound and Snowfaka are called Green Puppy and Snow Lemur in the Zoboomafoo show. Grasshound sounds a lot cooler than 'Green Puppy' and Snowfaka is a combo of snow and Sifaka, the species of lemur that plays Zoboomafoo in the show.**

**Also Ttark comes from Kratts Creatures, not Zoboomafoo, but I said this story would be incorporating nods to all three shows. **

**But all in all, what did you think of Wild Krew? It's not my best work, but I'm still happy with it!**

**Until Next Time!**


	26. Epilogue

Tang Ri Shan

**The Wild Krew**

**(After much deliberation...****)**

**Epilogue**

"No way" Amy's eyes widened and her jaw dropped. "Real aliens?"

"Uh huh" Jackie nodded, smiling at her friend's reaction as she watched multiple people paddle out into Crescent Lake in boats and canoes. Many of them carried fishing gear. "You should have seen the planet they live on, it was incredible!"

"Knock it off, will you? I'm jealous enough!" Amy groaned, but her lips curled up into a smile.

"Hold on" Jackie suddenly hopped off the fence post she had been perched on and darted towards the shore of the lake, where her brother and Allison were standing with a team of researchers from the local university. They had been checking the toxicity level of the water and Jackie could see bewildered looks on their faces.

"I don't understand it" One of the scientists scratched his head. "This lake was almost completely contaminated the last time I was here and now there's barely any pollution here at all"

"Maybe someone came by and cleaned it all up" Ken suggested, shooting his sister a subtle wink as she approached. Jackie had to fight the urge to giggle.

"Pollution of that magnitude _cannot_ be cleaned up overnight!" The scientist exclaimed, looking annoyed.

"Well, somehow it did this time" Another man shook his head as he pulled a scanner out of the water and wiped it clean with a paper cloth. Ken and Jackie glanced at Allison, whose eyes twinkled. Still muttering to themselves, the scientists packed up their gear and began filing back towards a pair of white vans that were parked nearby.

"You sure there won't be any more inquiry into this?" Amy asked as she drew level with them. "I mean, this _does_ seem too good to be true"

"I'm pretty sure" Allison nodded. "The general public won't care _how_ the lake was cleaned, just as long as it _was_ cleaned"

"Thank goodness for that" Amy sighed, holding up her creature pod.

"What's that you got there?" The kids froze as one of the scientists spoke up. He was staring at the pod.

"What, this? Uh...It's a camera! The ultimate latest in digital camera design!" Amy grinned at the man and help up her pod. "Smile!" She called, miming taking a picture, then turned away before the man could say anything.

"Whew! That was close!" She whispered as the Scientist walked away.

"Too close" Ken agreed, frowning at Amy. "Why'd you pull that out?"

"I was checking the Tellurium readings, for you information" Amy snapped back, but Jackie could see a flash of red appear on her friend's cheeks.

"And...?" Jackie motioned for Amy to continue, trying to hide her smile.

Amy glanced at the screen and tapped it twice, pulling up an image of the bottom of the lake. It was mostly blue except for a few clusters of red dots and three green dots that were moving in-between the red ones. "Only a few signals left, and from the way the Krew is moving, those signals won't be around much longer."

"Good. The sooner we can mask the Tellurium signals, the happier I'll be" Ken crossed his arms in annoyance.

"You can say that again." Amy nodded, then tapped a button. "How's it going down there, you guys?"

* * *

"It's going good!" Martin replied, glancing at the pod on his arm through the mist of bubbles that poured from his breathing mask. He grinned at the kids on the screen, then dove down towards the bottom of the lake, scattering a small school of small-mouth bass in the process. Sweeping his creature pod back and forth, he heard it beep loudly and paused, re-scanning the area until the beeping solidified into a whine. He smiled and reached into his pocket, pulling out a pencil-shaped object and jammed it into the ground, twisting the top as he did so. A tiny red light came on. "We should be finished in an hour at this rate!" He reported. He saw Koki, who was wearing a wet-suit, flash him a sign saying she was doing well.

"Good, then maybe we can all enjoy the fishing festival" Aviva's face popped up on the screen, her hair flowing behind her like a curtain through the water. Like Koki, she was also wearing a wet-suit. "No sign of trouble in the bass spawning grounds." She reported while glancing around. "You got anything Chris?"

"_Nope!"_ Chris's face appeared on the screen, the sun reflecting off of his green helmet. A kayak paddle passed into view and back out again. "_Everything seems fine up here!"_

"Well, then, let's get back to..." Aviva's words were interrupted by a shrill ringing that came from the creature pods.

* * *

"That's the creature alarm!" Allison gasped as the pods kept ringing. "Something must be wrong!" The foursome glanced around and then darted towards one of the small buildings that lined the pier on one side of the lake.

Once they were out of sight, Allison activated her pod and Jimmy Z's image popped up from inside the Tortuga. "_Heads up everyone! We have a Kritter emergency coming in from Australia! Patching through now!_" His image suddenly disappeared and was replaced by the image of a nervous-looking young boy with brown hair.

"_Emergency! Emergency! This is Austin from Creature Corps Australia, calling the Wild Krew! Come in!_"

"_We hear you Austin. What's going on?"_ Martin's voice replied, and the boy visibly seemed to relax.

"_I'm calling from outside Perth, and you'll never gonna guess who just showed up. Gourmand!"_

"Gourmand!" Ken, Jackie, Amy, and Allison exchanged a shocked look. "What's he up to?" Jackie asked.

"Nothing good, I'll bet" Amy growled.

_"He was looking for volunteers to accompany him into the Outback. And.."_ Austin paused. "_ I'm pretty sure I heard him say something about kangaroo meat"_

"Kangaroo Meat?" Jackie gasped, her face turning pale, and then red as she fumed. "Why that big, bloated meanie!"

"Easy sis" Ken soothed. "The Wild Krew can take care of this"

"_Right you are Ken!"_ Chris's image appeared on the screen. "_So, who's gonna go?_"

"_Oh, one more thing"_ Austin suddenly cut back in. _ "Gourmand wasn't alone, there was another person with him. Gourmand called him Gat...gate..."_ Austin struggled to pronounce the word.

Jackie suddenly gasped fearfully. "Are you trying to say 'Gateaux'?" She asked.

_"That's it! That's the guy!"_ Austin nodded on the screen.

"The Chef from the restaurant!" The siblings exclaimed simultaneously. "What's he doing in Australia?"

"If he's with Gourmand, that cannot be good" Allison commented darkly. "You guys better get to Australia ASAP!"

"_Yes please!"_ Austin spoke up. "_My mates and I are tying to stall him, but we can't hold him for long"_

"_We're on our way!"_ Chris cried out

_"But what about the Tellurium? We haven't finished here yet!"_ Martin countered.

Ken and Jackie glanced up at each other, their expressions identical and they smiled. "You guys get down to Australia and protect those Kangaroos" Jackie told them

"Jackie and I can finish hiding the Tellurium signals" Ken finished.

_"Thanks you guys!"_ Chris grinned at them.

_"I knew adding you two to the Krew was a good idea!"_ Martin added

"_OK JZ, set course for Australia. We're heading out!"_ Aviva instructed.

_"I'm sending ya my coordinates now!"_ Austin piped up just before the screen went dark.

"And we'd better get _in"_ Ken said, but was interrupted by Jackie's shirt, which had been tossed in his face.

"Way ahead of you bro" Jackie grinned, adjusting the straps of her swimsuit before dashing to the pier and diving gracefully into the water.

Ken rolled his eyes and turned to Allison. "You have a pair of breathing apparatuses with you?"

Allison grinned and pulled two such masks from behind her back. "I had a feeling something like this might happen, so I brought extra."

"Wow, you should have been in the scouts!" Amy commented.

"Who says I wasn't?" Allison responded, shooting Amy a wink as she handed Ken the masks. As Ken fitted his in place, he saw Chris, Martin, Koki, and Aviva disappear into the blurred outline that was the Tortuga, floating on the surface of the lake. To the untrained eye, the Tortuga was invisible, but if you knew exactly what you were looking for, it was possible to observe the ship even when it was camouflaged.

"There they go. Off to the creature rescue" Allison commented as they watched the Tortuga lift silently off the ground and into the sky.

"You sure you don't wanna go with them?" Amy teased, turning to Ken.

Ken shook his head. "The Krew have their mission, and my sister and I have ours. Besides, it would look pretty suspicious if we _all_ disappeared."

"Good point" Amy commented as Ken tossed the second mask to his sister, who floated in the water beneath them, one hand clutching the bag of remaining transmitters that Martin had had a few moments ago. Jackie fitted the mask, signaled that she was okay, then dove beneath the surface.

"Let's do it!" Ken exclaimed before jumping into the lake and diving down towards the bottom.

Spotting Jackie ahead, he swam to catch up with her, but a sudden current shifted him into a large mass of underwater reeds and he found himself face-to-face with an enormous large-mouth bass. "Oh, Hi Gulpa!" He smiled. The fish gaped its mouth at him and Ken nodded, then paused as his eyes caught a faint glow coming from under the giant fish. He set his Creature Pod to scan for Tellurium and immediately it began beeping. "Jackie! Over here!" He called into his pod and his sister joined him in a rush of bubbles.

"Hi Gulpa! Thanks!" She greeted the bass, who gaped its mouth at her now and swam off a short distance as Jackie stuck one of the transmitters into the mud near the glow and switched it on. Not only did the signal disappear from the Creature Pod screen, but the glow seemed to fade as well.

"Ok, one down, let's see where..." Ken turned in a circle, scanning for more when he spotted Gulpa gaping her mouth at him. He pointed the pod in her direction and it started beeping. Before Ken could say anything, Gulpa quickly darted to another location ten feet away, and gaped her mouth at him again. Ken swung the pod to her new location and it beeped again. "Hey Jackie. I think Gulpa's trying to help us out here"

"I think you're right" Jackie agreed. "Well come on! Let's not make her wait!" She exclaimed, holding out handful of transmitters. Ken took them and they took off after Gulpa.

"Who say's Mother Nature can't match technology?" Ken joked as they followed the bass deeper into the lake, placing transmitters at every place Gulpa stopped at.

"Hee hee! Not us!" Jackie giggled as she playfully tumbled in the water. As if hearing her, Gulpa swam in a loop around her, causing both siblings to laugh as they swam deeper. Their laughter seemed to echo in the water, which seemed to come alive with fish and other underwater creatures who made way for two new members of their lack-bottom world.

* * *

**And Cut! THAT'S A WRAP!**

**And we're done! Whew! I cannot believe it took me this long to write an epilogue! Seriously! I know I said inspiration was fleeting, but not _this_ fleeting!**

**So Wild Krew comes to a close and I'm quite proud of it. I admit There was a while when I actually thought I would not get this story done at all. I would love to hear your final comments! What did you like? What didn't you like? **

**Like I said when I began this story, I'm a big fan of the Kratt brothers and their mission of conservation. Every single species alive on this earth has some amazing powers that could serve to help us if we only took enough time to understand them. For example: by studying how spiders produce silk, we could create ultra-strong clothing and safety gear, or we may develop new and safer architectural designs by studying how termites build their homes. **

**Just because we may be highly advanced does not mean we are the most powerful species on this planet! The sooner we realize that, the better off we will all be! But, that's just my opinion! !)**

**Until next time! **


End file.
